←back to thread

How to Use Em Dashes (–), En Dashes (–), and Hyphens (-)

(www.merriam-webster.com)
650 points Stratoscope | 1 comments | 27 Mar 25 20:19 UTC | HN request time: 0.2s | source
Show context
Starlevel004 ◴[27 Mar 25 22:09 UTC] No.43498765[source]▶
I refuse to care about this. A single dash is all I will ever use. I see no possible reason to use the other two.
replies(13): >>43498913 #>>43499001 #>>43499172 #>>43499782 #>>43500834 #>>43500943 #>>43501907 #>>43503357 #>>43504331 #>>43505366 #>>43506816 #>>43506857 #>>43509215 #
milesrout ◴[28 Mar 25 02:47 UTC] No.43500943[source]▶
i refuse to care about this lowercase letters are all i will ever use i see no possible reason to use the other symbols

Suit yourself, but if you refuse to learn basic grammar you will be treated like you are stupid and uneducated. Like it or not, presentation matters. Getting the basics right, including things like spelling, grammar, etc, shows a basic attention to detail without which your services will likely do more harm than good.

replies(2): >>43501124 #>>43501523 #
handoflixue ◴[28 Mar 25 04:25 UTC] No.43501523[source]▶
> etc,

actually it's "etc."

(I wouldn't usually be a pedant, but if you think the difference between "--" and "—" matters, you should probably try to get the basics right too.)

replies(2): >>43502523 #>>43516888 #
1. nosrepa ◴[29 Mar 25 17:01 UTC] No.43516888[source]▶
I prefer &c