Posts filed under 'hyphen or no hyphen'
September 1st, 2009
Most “pay” nouns are properly written as one word: “payment,” “paycheck,” “payday,” “payload” and “payroll.”
This list even includes three nouns fashioned from verb phrases: “payback,” “payoff” and “payout.” However, write the verb phrases as two words: “We hope to pay off all our debts this year. It’s a long story, but here’s the payoff.”
The only common “pay” noun that’s two words is “pay dirt.”
And now that schools have reopened, here’s my annual reminder on Associated Press style for “grade” words:
Spell out the ordinals “first” through “ninth”; use numerals for “10th,” “11th” and “12th.”
Hyphenate modifiers (”fifth-grade student,” “11th-grade class”) and the “graders” (”second-grader,” “10th-grader”).
Also, note the hyphen in “grade-point average.”
And Webster’s preferred spelling is “kindergartner,” with two “e’s” instead of three.
Master these, and you may go to the head of my class.
July 1st, 2009
‘Tis the season for stories about power usage, which means it’s time for this reminder: There’s a hyphen in “kilowatt-hour.”
This is generally the case for terms that combine two types of measurement: kilowatt-hour (power and time); foot-pound (distance and weight); light-year (speed and time).
By contrast, terms that combine a unit of measure and a simple modifier are generally two words: square mile, cubic centimeter, fluid ounce, liquid quart, dry quart, troy ounce, board foot.
And while I’m on the topic, another reminder about light-year: It’s not a unit of time but of distance — how far light can travel in a year. And at 186,000 miles per second, that’s a fur piece — and I don’t mean a mink coat.
May 27th, 2009
As a follow-up to my previous offering on “sign-up,” a colleague asked:
“What if a protester was holding up a sign? What if a protester was robbing a preschooler? Would those be holdups or hold-ups?”
Wouldn’t it be nice if such things were consistent? But no, the answer is “holdups,” one word.
The same goes for the slang synonym for armed robbery, “stickup.”
So what’s the holdup on sign-up? I don’t know. Maybe it’s because robbing has been around longer than writing.
May 25th, 2009
One of the major sources of idiomatic expressions in English is the combination of a verb and a preposition. For example, pairing the verb “sign” with different prepositions yields different meanings: sign away, sign in, sign out, sign on, sign off, sign up.
The words in such verb phrases are kept separate so objects, when needed, can fit in between them: sign your life away, sign me up.
When such phrases become nouns or adjectives, the first step in such an evolution is to insert a hyphen:
“What’s your sign-on?”
” ‘Good night and good luck’ was his signature sign-off.”
“The sign-up period for that class ends Friday.”
Eventually, some such nouns and adjectives lose the hyphen and become one word. So far, that hasn’t happened with the “sign” words.
So, the noun meaning “registration” is still “sign-up,” hyphenated.
These things do make a difference. Notice the change in meaning in “a protester holding a sign up” and “a preschool holding a sign-up.”
Time to sign off for today.
March 19th, 2009
When dealing with compound modifiers, heed this advice from The Associated Press Stylebook:
“Do not use a hyphen between adverbs ending in ‘-ly’ and adjectives they modify.” For example, no hyphens are needed in the following: “a badly damaged reputation,” “a publicly owned company,” “a greatly admired teacher,” “a grossly overpaid actor” and so on.
Just remember that not all words ending in “-ly” are adverbs. “Family,” for instance, can be a noun or an adjective, so a hyphen is recommended in a phrase like “family-oriented programs.”
As always, beware of homonyms. “Holy,” as in “holy orders,” and “holey,” as in “holey socks,” are adjectives, but “wholly,” as in “wholly owned subsidiary,” is an adverb.
And please resist the temptation to use nonexistent adverbs, like “majorly.”
March 9th, 2009
I haven’t blogged for a while. I hope I remember how to do this.
Use the one-word “rundown” as a noun for “a concise summary or outline” or, in baseball, for chases between bases: “He overran second base and got caught in a rundown.”
The adjective for “not wound and therefore not operating, as a spring-operated clock”; “in poor physical condition, as from overwork, debilitated”; and “fallen into disrepair, dilapidated” is “run-down,” hyphenated.
Try to remember it this way: Since “run-down” refers to something that isn’t in top condition, look at the word as being broken and the hyphen as a bandage.
July 8th, 2008
When “goer” is attached to a word to add the meaning “one that attends regularly or frequents,” it usually doesn’t need a hyphen.
Among those that can be found in the dictionary are “churchgoer,” “concertgoer,” “filmgoer” or “moviegoer,” and “theatergoer.”
As with most things, it’s possible to go too far. For example, when faced with how to handle “Oktoberfest goer,” I would go with two words, for two reasons.
First, “goer” is a legitimate word all by itself.
Second, using it as one word, “Oktoberfestgoer,” is, as Mel Brooks might say, too German. Sure, it’s the appropriate cultural connection, but we don’t want to get into the habit of creating these unwieldy monsters.
Remember: We have to be able to say them, too.
Of course, another option is to recast a sentence so you don’t need any goers. Make the goers gone.
July 2nd, 2008
I’ve noticed a tendency to hyphenate the adjective “newfound,” but no hyphen is needed. The way I remember it is the Canadian province “Newfoundland”: If that doesn’t need a hyphen, why should “newfound”?
Other Webster’s preferences on “new” words (proper names not included):
One word: newborn, newcomer, newlywed and, my favorite, newfangled.
Two words: new blood, new moon, new wave, new year and new math, which isn’t new anymore.
Hyphenated: new-mown (for describing freshly cut hay or grass) and new-fashioned.
The latter is the opposite of “old-fashioned,” which, when capitalized, is a cocktail containing whiskey, bitters, sweetening and a touch of water with a garnish of fruit. I haven’t heard of a drink called a “new-fashioned,” probably because the recipe would have to keep changing.
Cheers!
