The Hyphen

Examine the italicized words in the two sentences below.

Standard Sentences

My thirteen-year-old daughter enjoys playing soccer.

My daughter who plays soccer is thirteen years old.

Consider why there are hyphens in the first sentence but not the second. “Thirteen-year-old” and “thirteen years old” both describe the noun “daughter.” The main difference is that one group of words comes before the noun (the first) and the other does not. In the second sentence, it comes after a form of the verb to be.

“Compound” simply means combined. Study the examples below.

Standard Sentences

I study sixteenth-century literature.

My favorite literature to study was written in the sixteenth century.

There was a three-dollar tie for sale.

The tie cost three dollars.

The three-year-old children should go the classroom 234.

The curriculum is designed for a three-year-old. [Note that, in this sentence, the hyphenated phrase is a compound noun; therefore, it is hyphenated.

Standard

We need to buy twenty-four bagels to get a bargain.

Was your number twenty or twenty-one?

Find the seventy-seven gems before midnight tonight.

For the Careful Writer:

Unless you’re writing something with a number of numbers—statistics, scores, page numbers, et cetera—it’s a good idea to write out all numbers from zero to one hundred.  Dates do not have to be written out (but see the example below), and you should avoid using superscripts in dates—1^st, 9^th, et cetera).

Standard

Fifteen years ago, I moved to Maine.

We have had up to one hundred pets in our house at one time.

She was famous for having 101 Dalmatians.

Study the hyphen so you’ll avoid getting a zero on your quiz!

On September 9, 1970, the world was unaware of its future.

We meet on the third of each month.  Our next meeting will be on October 3.

Standard

Please read pages 148-288.

Be aware that this standard of using the hyphen or writing out the word to as in (“148 to 288”) may vary based on a text’s requirements.

Standard Sentences

Please re-read pages 148-288.

You’ll need to re-sign your letter of resignation before you can resign from the company.

She lived a semi-independent life.

The upholstery is frayed; the chair needs to be re-covered.

Note that a hyphen, one stroke at the top right of your keyboard, is not a dash. See “The Dash” below.