Define the use of Hyphenation
Define the use of hyphenation in the sentence structure guidelines. CC_ID 06187
Avoid using hyphens, because many words that once were hyphenated are now written as one word or as two words without a hyphen. To check whether a compound noun is two words, one word, or hyphenated, you may need to look it up in the dictionary. If you can't find the word in the dictionary, treat the noun as separate words. With that said, there are a few rules you can follow (actually there's a bunch you need to know if you don't want to just look up the words, which is easier).
General Rule 1: Compound verbs
Compound verbs are either hyphenated or appear as one word. If you do not find the verb in the dictionary, hyphenate it. Again, because it doesn't seem that there's a rhyme or reason, look to an authoritative dictionary for the correct example.
Correct
Incorrect
rollout
roll-out
time-sharing
timesharing
opt-out
opt out
web hosting
web-hosting
General Rule 2: Two or more adjectives before a noun
Generally, hyphenate between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea. Note the second example in this scenario and the last example in the previous scenario. This time the term is hyphenated because it comes before the noun and acts as a single idea. Example:
make-available production
web-hosting company
General Rule 3: Two or more adverbs describing a noun
When adverbs not ending in -ly are used as compound words in front of a noun, hyphenate. When the combination of words is used after the noun, do not hyphenate.
Correct
Incorrect
well-known attack pattern
the attack pattern was well known
General hyphens with prefixes rule
The general rule is to do away with unnecessary hyphens. Therefore, attach most prefixes and suffixes onto root words without a hyphen. Examples:
noncompliance
copayment
Of course, where would we be without exceptions?
Hyphen prefix special rule 1: Hyphenate before a proper noun
Proper nouns (nouns that are capitalized) and acronyms should always be hyphenated, if they have a prefix. Examples:
anti-British
de-NIST
Hyphen Prefix Special Rule 2: Double e, o, a, and i
Prefixes and root words that result in double e's and double o's are usually combined to form one word. On the other hand, hyphenate prefixes ending in an a or i only when the root word begins with the same letter.
Correct
Incorrect
preemployment
pre-employment
coordinate
co-ordinate
semiautomatic
semi-automatic
semi-invalid
semi invalid
Hyphen Prefix Special Rule 3: Re and ex.
Hyphenate when adding the prefix ex meaning former. Examples:
ex-CIO
ex-client
Use the hyphen with the prefix re only when the re means again AND omitting the hyphen would cause confusion with another word. This is almost painful to try to think through on a regular basis.
Hyphen Prefix: Special Rule 4 e-
When using e as a prefix to describe something that exists in electronic form that also exists in non-electronic form, hyphenate the prefix.
Correct
Incorrect
e-discovery
ediscovery
Prefixes that shouldn't be hyphenated
Here's a list of prefixes that should not be hyphenated (but usually are):
anti- bi- co- contra- counter- cyber- de- extra- infra- inter- intra- micro- mid- multi- non- over- peri- post- pre- pro- proto- pseudo- re- semi- sub- super- supra- trans- tri- ultra- un- under- whole-
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