Is it 1 word, 2 words, or hyphenated?
Brian Moore
Senior copywriter 📝 Make more money using my words 💰 Serving healthcare + higher education brands ⬇️
Writers, I have to be straight with you. This grammar rule we're talking about today cannot be solved using simple memorization alone. But, the framework I've outlined below should give you a clear and quick path to your answer. What's the question?
"Should this word be solid,
two words, or hyphenated?"
Every writer encounters this mind-bender. It keeps us running to our dictionaries several times a day.
"Check in, check-in, or checkin?"
"Lifetime or life-time?"
"Sign-in, sign in, or signin."
"Livestream or live stream or live-stream." And on and on it goes.
Unless you have a photographic memory, you need to figure out if the word or phrase you want to use is one word that stands alone every time, if it is two words separated by a space, or if it is hyphenated. Here's how you do that:
Step 1: Check the dictionary to see if the word exists
Sigh. Yes, I feel your pain. Writers probably do this too many times to count already, but consulting a dictionary is the first step in determining if the word you want to use is solid, two words, or hyphenated.
I use the Merriam-Webster online dictionary. AP prefers Webster's New World College Dictionary. Chicago Manual of Style uses Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. I don't care which one you use. Just don't use the one you just made up in your head. That one gets outdated before you finish your morning coffee.
When you have your dicationary open, do this in this order:
1 Look for your word. This is self-explanatory. I hope.
2 If you find your word, fantastic! That means you can use it as it appears in the dictionary.
3 If you don't find your word, you have more work to do. Sorry about your luck. When using Merriam-Webster online, I see this when my word doesn't exist:
4 With your word in hand, move on to the next section. In this case, we'll continue using "first half" as our word. Yes, I know we all know what "first half" means, but just go with it for the sake of this lesson. Patience, grasshopper.
Step 2: Is your 'word' acting as a compound adjective?
Don't let the term "compound adjective" scare you. Stop being a wuss. I took it easy on ya. I could have used a more technical term like "compound modifier," "phrasal adjective," or "adjectival phrase." You're welcome.
A compound adjective is just two or more words serving as an adjective to modify another word, usually a noun. Compound adjectives are hyphenated. Let's take our "first half" example and use it in a sentence.
➡️ "For the first half of the day, she just stared at a blank Word document in an attempt to write her latest article."
In the sentence above, "first half" is not modifying anything, it stands on its own as a noun. We know it cannot be the solid word "firsthalf" because we did not find it in the dictionary.(Remember Part 3 of Step 1 above? I mean, you just read it.)
➡️ "With four first-half touchdowns, the running back single-handedly beat the Bears."
In this sentence, first half modifies touchdowns, so it should be hyphenated.
To recap: If the word you originally didn't find in the dictionary is modifying a noun, hyphenate it. If it is not modifying a noun, use it as two words.
Step 3: Is your word or phrase an exception to the above rules?
Rules were made to be broken, right? No, they were not. That's a dumb saying; don't ever use it in your writing. Rules were made to be followed. But sometimes, the rules do not apply in every instance.
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Certain modifiers are always two words with no hyphen
You don't have to rely on the dictionary or the rules of hyphenation for some compound modifiers. They are so recognizable as two words, they can stand on their own.
Here's how AP describes this exception:
"But in general: No hyphen is needed if the modifier is commonly recognized as one phrase, and if the meaning is clear and unambiguous without the hyphen. Examples include third grade teacher, chocolate chip cookie, early morning traffic, special effects embellishment, climate change report, public land management, first quarter touchdown, real estate transaction."
This is a hard concept to nail down, but use your best judgment. What we're trying to avoid is using a compound adjective that could confuse readers if it doesn't have a hyphen. Like this:
➡️ "The pandemic forced the small business owner into bankruptcy."
See the problem? Is small modifying "owner" or "business"? Are we trying to say a small person who owns a business declared bankruptcy? Or are we saying an owner of a small business declared bankruptcy? The hyphen gives you the answer.
➡️ "The pandemic forced the small-business owner into bankruptcy."
Now we have ensured readers understand the person owns a small business.
Hypenate these prefixes, no matter how you use them
Almost without exception, hyphenate all words that begin with the prefixes "well-" "self-" "ex-" and "all-."
👉🏽 "He remained self-confident that his all-knowing powers gave him the upper hand in his courtroom battle with his ex-wife."
In general, you can add a hyphen to a prefix if you think the resulting word would confuse readers if it had none. Words like "de-ice" would look weird as "deice," for example.
Congratualtions, your work is done. You can go back to staring at your sentence for another 12 minutes.
Sell your stuff and tell your story using my words
Getting the right words in the right place for the right audience can be difficult. If you need a hand, please reach out. I will write the words that sell your stuff and tell your story. brianmichaelmoore4123@gmail.com
Writer | Editor | Entrepreneur | Nature Lover
2yThanks for the quick and humorous lesson!