hyphen
[ hahy-fuh n ]
/ ˈhaɪ fən /
noun
a short line (-) used to connect the parts of a compound word or the parts of a word divided for any purpose.
verb (used with object)
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How Do You Use Hyphens?The shortest of the dashes, hyphens (–) link words and parts of words. They can connect prefixes or break up a word at the end of a line of text. They can also combine two or more words that describe a noun. For example, in George Orwell’s 1984, hyphenated words help create unusual descriptive phrases: “He felt deeply drawn to him, and not solely because …
Nearby words
hypethral, hypha, hyphedonia, hyphema, hyphemia, hyphen, hyphen help, hyphenate, hyphenated, hyphenation, hyphenic
Origin of hyphen
1595–1605; < Late Latin < Greek hyphén (adv.) together, derivative of hyph' hén (prepositional phrase), equivalent to hyp(ó) under (see hypo-) + hén, neuter of heîs one
Related formshy·phen·ic [hahy-fen-ik] /haɪˈfɛn ɪk/, adjectivede·hy·phen, verb (used with object)un·hy·phened, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for hyphen
British Dictionary definitions for hyphen
hyphen
/ (ˈhaɪfən) /
noun
the punctuation mark (-), used to separate the parts of some compound words, to link the words of a phrase, and between syllables of a word split between two consecutive lines of writing or printing
verb
(tr) another word for hyphenate
Word Origin for hyphen
C17: from Late Latin (meaning: the combining of two words), from Greek huphen (adv) together, from hypo- + heis one
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for hyphen
hyphen
1620s, from Late Latin hyphen, from Greek hyphen "mark joining two syllables or words," probably indicating how they were to be sung, noun use of an adverb meaning "together, in one," literally "under one," from hypo "under" (see sub-) + hen, neuter of heis "one."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Culture definitions for hyphen
hyphen
A punctuation mark (-) used in some compound words, such as self-motivation, seventy-five, and mother-in-law. A hyphen is also used to divide a word at the end of a line of type. Hyphens may appear only between syllables. Thus com-pound is properly hyphenated, but compo-und is not.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.