Hyphens (compound words, etc.)

[Marla Sharp]

Here are some great sites explaining when to use a hyphen:

http://www.mtdaily.com/mt1/hyphens.html
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/compounds.htm
http://www.grammarmudge.cityslide.com/articles/article/426348/2805.htm
http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/CMS_FAQ/HyphensEnDashesEmDashes...

[Lisa Booker]

Which is correct:

392-acre parcel

or

392 acre parcel.

I say the first one

[Jennie]

I keep running across this phrase in recent times:

"We are an everyday, every-way department."

It looks funny to me like the above-referenced way. Does anybody else have any ideas on how this should be punctuated? It's a term which the Secretary of USDA seems to use quite often when describing the Department of Agriculture.

And should I capitalize the "D" in "department," since it's U.S. Department of Agriculture?

TIA to any and all responders.

[Marla Sharp]

The way you have it is perfect. "Everyday" is one word when used as an adjective. And "every-way" is a compound word modifying department. You need the comma to replace the "and" that would otherwise be between "everyday and every-way." And I would not capitalize "department" because they are referring to themselves generically, e.g., "We are a great department." You could cap it if they were specifically referencing the Department of Agriculture, e.g., "The Department has several subdepartments."

[Jennie]

Thanks so much for the response. This is a phrase that is being used more and more in recent times.

It so so frustrating to not be sure about stuff like that. Of course, I wonder if anybody else notices it as much as we do. :>)

The same transcript, they kept referring to "geospatial." In the title of the presentation, it was spelled as "Geo-Spatial." On the website of this agency, they had it as "GEO-spatial" and "geospatial."

SHEESH! Decisions, decisions, decisions. I didn't know which one to go with. I ended up making my own executive decision and went with "geospatial," one word.

[Marla Sharp]

I have the same problem with LiveScan. It's every which way on the Internet, but I haven't been able to find out if it's a mfr or a generic term. Drives me crazy!

[Jennie]

I have another hyphen stumbling block. I think I have been producing too many pages as of late, and I am brain dead. For the life of me, I cannot figure out which is right.

Please help a brain-dead transcriptionist get it right. :>)

Example 1: The most well-studied, the most well-characterized are women who have had a prior preterm birth.

Example 2: The most well studied, the most well characterized are women who have had a prior preterm birth.

To hyphen or not to hyphen, that's the question. Well-studied and well-characterized risk factors are what they are talking about.

[Kyung]

Hyphens will be the death of me yet.

brain injury depression or brain-injury depression

nonbrain-injury depression or non-brain injury depression or non-brain-injury depression (It's ugly all around.)


OR

Someone has a depression that is is nonbrain injury?

In the above sentence, should it be non-brain injury or nonbrain injury? I'm thinking non-brain injury because nonbrain injury means there's no brain, which is not true.

So then the depression ones should be non-brain injury depression; right?

Then I also have brain-injury-caused depression. What do you think? Should that be all hyphenated.

Just shoot me now.

[Derek Hoagland]

I want to offer, you know, 9 million for these 12 and a half million worth of first trust deeds.
I want to offer, you know, 9 million for these 12-and-a-half million worth of first trust deeds.
I want to offer, you know, 9 million for these 12 and-a-half million worth of first trust deeds.

hepl.

[Jennie]

I would do it like this: "I want to offer, you know, 9 million for these 12-and-a-half-million worth of first trust deeds."

I hyphenated "12 and a half million" because I thought it was describing the noun "worth."

I will be interested to read how others do it!

[Derek Hoagland]

oo, that's good advice. I like that. Don't you hate it when you can't for the life of you see whats modifying what even though its staring you in the face?

Thanks!

[Joyce Holbrook]

Hi. I have been a reporter for many years and had worked for various agencies being a new reporter and everybody had their own style. I was taught to use numbers if i'ts over 10 or 10.
but i think it's so much easier to read if it's 9 million, etc. I hyphenate because that's the way i was taught. The Gregg Reference Manual that I have

[Jennie]

Dag nab it, these hyphen conundrums are bothersome.

Here is the sentence:

"It came about as the result of the sale of a health care plan that was community health center-owned and -operated."

Does a hyphen belong before "owned" and "operated"?

TIA to any and all responders.