When should I use a dash?

A dash is a little horizontal line that floats in the middle of a line of text (not at the bottom: that’s an underscore). It’s longer than a hyphen and is commonly used to indicate a range or a pause. Dashes are used to separate groups of words, not to separate parts of words like a hyphen does.

In what situations do we use a dash?

Dashes are commonly used to indicate an unexpected or emphatic pause, but they serve other specific functions as well. Dashes are often used to mark interruptions within sentences, illustrate relationships between words, and demarcate value ranges.

When writing you can most effectively use a dash two?

Weegy: When writing, you can most effectively use a dash – in place of a semicolon.

Can you use a dash instead of a comma?

Use Dashes in Place of a Comma Em dashes can be used in pairs to replace commas when writing a parenthetical or interruptive phrase. The dashes have a slightly more emphatic feel, making the reader focus on this information that is set inside the special marks.

Is a dash a symbol?

The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen and minus sign but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline.

Which is the correct way to use a dash?

For example: “Using dashes is a bit of an ad——n [addiction?]”, said Jennifer. Break the rules! If you are writing formal documents or writing for publication, it’s best to use dashes correctly. However… Some people prefer the way a ‘space-en-dash-space’ looks.

When to use a dash between dates and times?

When using dashes between ranges, the values are inclusive. For example: The Great Fire of London took place 2–6 September 1666. (As the values are inclusive, the fire lasted 5 days.) Note: If you’re a stickler for the rules, use an en dash between times and dates. You will get away with a hyphen.

When do you use an en dash instead of an em dash?

Recall that en dashes are slightly shorter in length than em dashes. En dashes may look similar to em dashes, but they function in a much different way. The en dash is often used to indicate spans of time or ranges of numbers. In this context, the dash should be interpreted as meaning either “to” or “through.” Consider the examples below:

Are there two types of dashes in English?

There are actually two types of dashes, each with different uses: the em dash —also called the ” long dash,” according to Oxford Online Dictionaries—and the en dash, which doesn’t have another name but falls between the hyphen and em dash in terms of length.