Thread: Using the -- break, and () agains't [].

When is it correct to use the -- break in a text? And when adding () or [], something I usually don't do in texts, when is it correct to use one or the other?

Originally Posted by SixPence

When is it correct to use the -- break in a text? And when adding () or [], something I usually don't do in texts, when is it correct to use one or the other?

I believe "--" is called an "em dash." Wikipedia has some decent information about it here.

Parentheses should be used for parenthetical statements: fragments of sentences (or groups of sentences) that can be removed without affecting the thought as a whole. Brackets can be used as nested parentheses (when you have one [or more] sets of parentheses within another set), but they're more often used to indicate words that were meant but not said to improve readability/comprehension.

For example, an original quote might be "I don't believe the plan laid out by Mayor Jimbob McGee Francis Thompson III is feasible." However, if it was in a newspaper article, it might be "I don't believe the plan laid out by [the mayor] is feasible."

There's some stuff on the web on emdashes. I've gleaned that the ellipsis (...) works in most situations. Supposedly the emdash is for an interruption and ellipsis for trailing interruption. I personally don't think there's any real difference, and the ellipsis looks better.

By the way, (ALT) 8211 on keypad make a nice emdash.

This is Grammar Girl's take on the subject of dashes, parentheses and commas. I suppose it depends on the type of writing you're doing - fiction vs. non-fiction - to know the uses of the brackets. I've only known them to be used in the manner that Gamer pointed out.

Gamer has it right. And you should be able to actually insert a real em dash instead of using hyphens. Took me a while to figure this out, since I'm pretty much a technophobe.

In my 2003 version of Microsoft Word, I can simply go to the Insert tab and click on "Symbol." I then get a menu of characters you can choose from; if I just hit copy, I can replace any hyphens I'd like without going back to the menu. I'm sure the newer versions and other word processing programs have something similar. Sometimes using the dashes saves me from a real headache when Word is reading a hyphen and trying to break a line in a way that I don't like.

Originally Posted by thinkingaboutit

Gamer has it right. And you should be able to actually insert a real em dash instead of using hyphens. Took me a while to figure this out, since I'm pretty much a technophobe.

In my 2003 version of Microsoft Word, I can simply go to the Insert tab and click on "Symbol." I then get a menu of characters you can choose from; if I just hit copy, I can replace any hyphens I'd like without going back to the menu. I'm sure the newer versions and other word processing programs have something similar. Sometimes using the dashes saves me from a real headache when Word is reading a hyphen and trying to break a line in a way that I don't like.

It's even easier if you tick the box in your Autocorrect menu. Under Tools, click on Autocorrect and when the new box pops up, click the AutoFormat tab and in the centre of the box there's a tick box for replacing the hypen with the dash. Then MS Word should recognise when you want one vs. the other.

Originally Posted by Offeiriad

Under Tools, click on Autocorrect and when the new box pops up, click the AutoFormat tab and in the centre of the box there's a tick box for replacing the hypen with the dash.

Thanks for this!

You're welcome.