How To Use Brackets And Dashes

Although ms word converts a hyphen to a longer en dash automatically when you put spaces at either side of it and press space or enter after the following word this is not actually the correct form of punctuation.

How to use brackets and dashes. Use for a word that is too long to fit at the end of a sentence. Sign up to complete it for free or. It is usually used as an alternative to another type of punctuation. The dashes can be found under special characters. Dashes are generally more informal and are often used in emails or other casual writing.

When the dash is used in this way it creates a compound adjective. Use an en dash when you need to connect terms that are already hyphenated or when you are using a two word phrase as a modifier. Just be careful not to overuse the dash as it s less formal than other punctuation. Also remember that a dash is composed of either an em dash first three sentences above or en dash bottom sentence. Parenthesis is a word or clause inserted into a text to show an afterthought or as extra information.

A pair of brackets commas or dashes can be used to enclose the extra information or. Using brackets and dashes view in classroom. Generally speaking the dash does not have a unique role. Using the en dash to denote a connection. You can also use two lines not just one which is a hyphen 9.

The sentence should always make sense without the parenthesis whether commas dashes or brackets are used. See the following examples. Use brackets when the information is purely incidental and unimportant but may help some readers. When used as parentheses dashes are alternatives to brackets or commas. The en dash may also be used to indicate a connection between two words.

To get a true em dash in ms word and some other word processors use ctrl alt with the minus sign the one on your number pad. Use commas when you do not want to disrupt the flow. This lesson we will be covering how to use brackets and dashes accurately a very useful skill. When used to extend a sentence a dash can replace a semicolon a colon or three dots used as a pause for effect. The extra info blends smoothly with the rest of the text.