![]() It is as wide as the N key on an old-fashioned typewriter. What is an en dash?Īn en dash is another dash that is smaller than the em dash yet longer than the hyphen. The letter was damaged by the water, so we could only make out this much: I’m t- I don’t thi- I will. ![]() When an entire word is missing, you can use two or three em dashes back-to-back, but be sure that you are keeping this consistent throughout your writing.Įxample of Replacing an Omitted Letters with a Em Dashes: Two em dashes can be used back-to-back to show that segments of a word have been omitted either intentionally or because they are unknown. The fresh snow, the crisp winter air, and the newly opened ski slopes-this is what brought us to Colorado. The fresh snow, the crisp winter air, and the newly opened ski slopes: this is what brought us to Colorado. We have provided examples of this below.Įxample of Replacing a Colon with an Em Dash: Keep in mind that the dash is less formal than a colon. The em dash can be used instead of a colon when you want to add importance to the conclusion of your sentence. In the second sentence, we are putting more emphasis on the names of the kids that are graduating, whereas in the first sentence, their names are just information we have included. Let’s review some examples below.Įxample of Replacing Parentheses with Em Dashes:Īll the kids (Sam, Tyler, Tim, and John) graduate in May.Īll the kids-Sam, Tyler, Tim, and John-graduate in May.īoth of these sentences are grammatically correct and show us the same information. Em dashes are considered less formal than parentheses and add more emphasis to the content that is contained within them. Em Dashes Instead of ParenthesesĪ pair of em dashes can be used in place of parentheses. When the Christmas presents-crushed and broken-arrived, we were quick to return them. ![]() When the Christmas presents, crushed and broken, arrived, we were quick to return them. The em dashes will always add more emphasis to your text than commas will, so be sure to keep this in mind when writing.Įxample of Replacing Commas with Em Dashes: You can use a pair of em dashes in place of a comma to add clarity or to enhance the readability of your document. We have looked at each use of an em dash below. To type an em dash on a Windows computer, you can hold down the “Alt” key and hit 0151 or hold down “Ctrl” + “Alt” + the number pad “-.” To type an em dash on a Mac computer, you can hit “Option” + “Shift” + “Hyphen.” Uses of an Em DashĪs we stated above, the em dash is one of the most versatile punctuation marks that you can use in your writing and can be used in place of commas, parentheses, or colons, depending on their context. This mark is made by typing two hyphens back to back and is as wide as the M key on an old-fashioned typewriter. Having too many em dashes in your document can get confusing, so it is best to limit yourself to no more than two em dashes per sentence. The em dash is one of the most versatile punctuation marks in the English languages and can be used in place of other punctuation marks depending on the context they are used in. We are going to explain exactly what each of these dashes are and the proper way to use them within this post. The dash has two types, the em dash and the en dash. When you think about punctuation marks, it is not often that your mind wanders to the dash.
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