The Em-dash and En-dash are on the ‘Special Characters’ menu (Insert | Symbol | More Symbols …) along with many other characters. To indicate ranges (“20-25 degrees”) or to join up words (“Dagg-Bayliss Act 2015”) An em dash is a dash that is the width of an M. Why is it called em dash The name comes from typographythe work of setting, arranging, and printing types. Word shortcut: Ctrl + Num – (that’s the hyphen/dash on a number pad) The em dash resembles a horizontal line () that is longer than both a hyphen (-) and an en dash (). “ sometimes used to set off summaries or definitions” En-dash “s how an abrupt change in thought or be used where a full stop (period) is too strong and a comma too weak” Word shortcut: Ctrl + Alt + Num – (that’s the hyphen/dash on a number pad) Wikipedia has a page on the various dashes with examples of their use. The names come from the amount of horizontal space they use, relative to the M and N characters (lower or upper case, depending on the font). They were not on a standard typewriter keyboard so they weren’t in general use until word-processors made them available to the public. These are two other hyphen-like characters in Word, the Em-dash and the En-dash. If you delve into typography keep in mind that there is a difference. We’ll use the terms dash & hyphen interchangeably because that’s what most people do. These three small marks serve different functions, and it’s important to use them in the correct context to communicate your message effectively. Technically there’s a difference between a dash (aka hyphen-minus), a hyphen and a minus sign, see the table below. In everyday life, most of us use the same key to type all three. The hyphen, n-dash, and m-dash can be tricky little fellows, but with a bit of practice, you’ll be using them like a pro in no time. We have more on hyphenation and special hyphens below. That hyphen is the one to separate hyphenated words.
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