Quick Guide to Hyphens, En Dashes, and Em Dashes

Have you ever wondered when to use hyphens, en dashes, or em dashes? They may look similar, but they serve very different purposes – it’s worth getting them right.

Hyphens (-)

Hyphens are the shortest of the three and the most straightforward. They’re used for faltering speech, simple separation, and compound adjectives:

• C-can you do it? (stuttering)

• My number is 1-2-3-4 (separator)

• Well-known author (adjective compound)

  • But: the author is well known.

En Dashes (–)

Windows: ALT + 0150

Mac: option + hyphen

The en dash is slightly longer and usually used for ranges:

• Chapter 1–3

• Monday–Friday

  
  

Though in fiction, these are often written out (‘chapter one to three’, ‘Monday to Friday’), depending on style and tone.

Em Dashes (—)

Windows: ALT + 0151

Mac: shift + option + hyphen

Em dashes are the longest and the most stylistic; they shape the feel of a sentence. Depending on the emphasis you want, you may want to use em dashes instead of commas, colons, or parentheses.

• He wouldn’t—couldn’t—leave her.

• He wouldn’t (couldn’t) leave her.

• He wouldn’t, couldn’t, leave her.

• One thing was certain: he wouldn’t leave him.

• One thing was certain—he wouldn’t leave him.

Many publishers in the UK choose to use spaced en dashes instead of closed-up em dashes:

• He wouldn’t – couldn’t – leave her.

• One thing was certain – he wouldn’t leave him.

Interrupted Dialogue

If a character is cut off mid-sentence or mid-word, we use a closed-up em dash in both US and UK styles:

• “I only wanted—”

  “Don’t,” she said.

And that’s it!

There are, of course, more uses and exceptions, but this guide covers the essentials.

Whether you follow New Hart’s Rules or The Chicago Manual of Style, the key is simple: pick one and stay consistent.

Clean, consistent punctuation:

• makes your writing easier to read

• helps your dialogue flow naturally

• gives your book a more professional finish

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