Punctuation Perfection: Hyphens

Hyphens look like this:

-

-

-

Hyphens separate words and parts of words. Here are the uses for hyphens:

2 Word Modifiers

When two words are combined to make a single adjective, they should include a hyphen.

· The well-prepared student

· The freshly-baked pie

· A one-to-one conversation

However, this is only true when the words come before the noun.

· He was well prepared.

· The pie was freshly baked.

Prefixes

Hyphens are always used with these prefixes:

self

all

great

Hyphens separate prefixes with proper nouns (nouns that begin with a capital letter):

· pro-Catholic

· pre-Cambrian

Numbers

Hyphens separate all two word numbers from twenty-one to ninety-nine.

· Thirty-two

· Fifty-four

This also includes fractions:

· One-third

· Three-fifths

Times also use hyphens:

· Seven-thirty

· Eight-fifteen

Hyphens can be used with numbers in place of the word "to".

· The score was 3-2.

· There will be about 10-15 people at the meeting.

Exclamation marks