|
|
Hyphen
In
this lesson you will learn the
definition of a hyphen and study examples of
hyphens. |
|
|
|
- A hyphen looks like this:
-
- A hyphen is:
- used both to join words and to separate syllables
- often confused with a
dash, which is longer
- used as a multiple-word
modifier, as in blood-red moon
- used to denote syllabification, as syl-lab-i-fi-ca-tion
-
Nouns formed of a
noun and an
adjective
are frequently hyphenated, as death-wish
- names for numbers from twenty-one to ninety-nine have hyphens
- if a word is split onto two lines, a hyphen will usually be
inserted immediately before the split
|
|
|
|
- Examples where meaning is changed due to the
placement of hyphens
- disease-causing poor nutrition meaning poor
nutrition that causes disease
- disease causing poor nutrition meaning a
disease that causes poor nutrition
- a man-eating shark is a shark that eats
humans
- a man eating shark is a man who is eating
shark meat
- a blue green sea is a contradiction
- a blue-green sea is a sea whose color is
somewhere between blue and green
- three-hundred-year-old trees are trees that
are 300 years old.
- three hundred-year-old trees are three trees
that are 100 years old.
- Additional examples of proper use
- text-only document or the document is
text-only
- Detroit-based organization or the
organization is Detroit-based
- board-certified strategy or the strategy is
board-certified
- thought-provoking argument or the argument
is thought-provoking
- time-sensitive error or the error is
time-sensitive
- case-sensitive password or the password is
case-sensitive
- light-gathering surface or the surface is
light-gathering
- award-winning novel or the novel is
award-winning (but, more likely, …won an award with no hyphen)
- web-based encyclopedia or the encyclopedia
is web-based
- fun-loving person or the person is
fun-loving
- how to wire-transfer funds
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Grammar Tips |
Can You Catch These Native Speaker Mistakes?
(Beginner - Listening)
An audio lesson to
help with your understanding of common mistakes. The English is
spoken at 75% of normal speed.
Click here to visit the lesson page with the written script for this
audio program. |
Commonly Confused Words: Part One
(Beginner - Listening,
reading)
A video lesson to
help with your understanding of commonly confused
words.
The English is
spoken at 75% of normal speed.
Click here to visit the lesson page. |
Commonly Confused Words: Part One
(Beginner - Listening)
An audio lesson to
help with your understanding of commonly confused
words. The English is
spoken at 75% of normal speed.
Click here to visit the lesson page with the written script for this
audio program. |
Commonly Confused Words: Part Two
(Beginner - Listening,
reading)
A video lesson to
help with your understanding of commonly confused
words.
The English is
spoken at 75% of normal speed.
Click here to visit the lesson page. |
Commonly Confused Words: Part Two
(Beginner - Listening)
An audio lesson to
help with your understanding of commonly confused
words. The English is
spoken at 75% of normal speed.
Click here to visit the lesson page with the written script for this
audio program. |
|
|
|
|
|
