USING M DASH FOR MAC
USING M DASH MANUAL
USING M DASH PC

Search for “dash” and find and select the em dash. If you can see it on your browser, copy and paste this 2-em dash: There is a distinct 2-em dash character which can be copied and pasted, but not all fonts support it. Some fonts will leave space between each dash.Ĭopy and paste or insert the distinct character If possible, use a 2-em dash symbol, not two consecutive em dashes, to avoid unwanted spacing that might appear in some fonts. When the dash comes at the end of a word, insert a space after it, unless there is punctuation immediately following it.ĭo not the underscore symbol in place of a 2-em dash. When part or parts of a word are missing, there should be no extra spacing before or after the dash. When a whole word is missing, insert spaces on either side of the dash. In iOS, typing two hyphens will automatically create an em dash.Įm dash: type or - or - or. Using the on-screen keyboard, find and hold. You can access your operating system’s character map by going to Edit, Character Map. For a more precise search, try “2013” or “en dash” for the en dash. Search for “dash” and find and select the desired dash. (For older versions of Word, Insert Symbol, More Symbols, Special Characters, and select and insert the desired dash.)

USING M DASH PC

In Word on a PC Insert, Symbol, More Symbols, Special Characters, choose General Punctuation in the drop down menu, and select the desired dash. In Word on a Mac, Insert, Advanced Symbol, Special Characters, then find and click Insert. Using a PC with numeric keypad, enable Num Lock and type Ctrl Alt. Using a PC laptop you can also type 2014 Alt x.

USING M DASH FOR MAC

Use the methods for Mac and Windows 10 described above. Word automatically converts two hyphens to an em dash. Select, copy, and paste the en dash or the em dash. Use ⊞ Win and Type in “character” or “ character map” in the operating system’s search function. Then click on Keyboard Preferences and check Show input menu in menu bar. If the Input menu is not displayed, open Language & Region within System Preferences. Or, pull down the Input menu and select Show Emoji & Symbols. (In some countries, Option will be Alt.) Most Macs will automatically convert two hyphens to an em dash. Sometimes the space you see before and after the dash is actually a special character called a “hair space” or a “thin space.”įind an em dash (-) or the desired symbol and paste it where a new one is wanted. In British usage and in some style guides, spaced en dashes are used place of an em dash.

USING M DASH MANUAL

Replace two consecutive hyphens with an em dash (many Macs and word processing programs will do this automatically).Īmerican English with The Chicago Manual as a style guide calls for no spacing before and after dashes. The double hyphen is a vestige of the typewriter era and is no longer standard practice (except in comics). Use em dashes (rather than commas or parentheses) when the words within the interpolation are significant and are not to be missed.ĭon’t use more than two em dashes in a single sentence. Authors and editors can use their discretion to decide where to use em dashes to set off text.Ĭonsider using parentheses rather than em dashes when giving definitions, the Latin name for something, or alternate spellings.Ĭonsider using colons when providing an in-text list or presenting several reasons for something. With a block quote, put the em dash on a new line following the quote and before the attribution, with no spacing on either side of the em dashĪs an alternative to in a blank or empty data cell in a chart or table (an unspaced ellipsis can also be used)Įm dash use is somewhat subjective.

With an inline quote, insert a space between the end of the quote and the attribution To indicate when a speaker self-interrupts with a sudden break in thought To indicate when a speaker is interruptedĪt the end of a line or sentence, to indicate emotion, trailing off, or a long pause To replace the words “that is,” “namely,” “for example,” and similar expressions within a sentence To set off text, where a set of parentheses might otherwise be usedĮm dashes indicate an interpolation that is stronger than what might be in parentheses or should be emphasized and noticed To invert the function of a colon by flipping the order of a sentence that would have a colon in it and replacing the colon with an em dash Use an em dash ( not two individual hyphens, and not an en dash) in these situations:

Using m dash