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HYPHENATING

Post your questions on whether to hyphenate here. I know we should always check the dictionary first, but the dictionary doesn't have all combinations of compound words and crazy things like that.

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Brenda Rogers on June 11, 2009 at 19:35

Looks good to me.

Permalink Reply by Karen Margolis on June 11, 2009 at 19:39

Thank you, thank you! You're the sweetest ... :)

Permalink Reply by Brenda Rogers on June 11, 2009 at 19:44

I usually run into the 20-minute 5-minute break . . . Let's GO already! lol

Permalink Reply by Marla Sharp on June 16, 2009 at 13:24

Does anyone hyphenate "board-certified" whether a noun comes after it or not? Example: "She is board-certified in neurology." I know it should be hyphenated when it's modifying a noun after it - "board-certified physician." But I'm wondering about the "word created for the occasion" rule, when words are placed out of order.

Permalink Reply by Marla Sharp on June 16, 2009 at 13:30

I found this on Wikipedia (I know, I know, we can't always trust Wikipedia):

Some strong examples of semantic changes caused by the placement of hyphens:
disease-causing poor nutrition, meaning poor nutrition that causes disease
disease causing poor nutrition, meaning a disease that causes poor nutrition
a man-eating shark is a shark that eats humans
a man eating shark is a man who is eating shark meat
a blue green sea is a contradiction
a blue-green sea is a sea whose colour is somewhere between blue and green
three-hundred-year old trees are trees that are 300 years old.
three hundred-year-old trees are three trees that are 100 years old.

Additional examples of proper use:
text-only document or the document is text-only
Detroit-based organization or the organization is Detroit-based
state-of-the-art product or the product is state-of-the-art (but The state of the art is very advanced. with no hyphen)
board-certified strategy or the strategy is board-certified

Permalink Reply by Brenda Rogers on June 16, 2009 at 14:19

Yes, hyphenate it even without the noun following.
Are you board-certified?
When were you board-certified?

I have B-FD defined with the hyphen. It's like full-time and part-time; so rarely is the hyphen not required that I just define them hyphenated and don't worry about them again.

Permalink Reply by Marla Sharp on June 16, 2009 at 15:01

I completely agree with you. I'm just having trouble finding a rule anywhere other than Wikipedia.

Permalink Reply by Brenda Rogers on June 16, 2009 at 15:23

board-cer·ti·fied (bôrdsûrt-fd, brd-) KEY

ADJECTIVE:

Having completed the process of board certification in a specialty field. Used chiefly of physicians: The hospital maintains a staff of board-certified surgeons and anesthesiologists.

That's from American Heritage.

Are you board-certified?
That's an adjective. There's your authority! :)

Permalink Reply by Marla Sharp on June 16, 2009 at 15:35

I looked for that at m-w.com (my favorite dictionary), but it didn't come up. I just went back again and searched for it but checked "medical" this time, and it came up! Yay! http://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/board%20certified

Thanks, Brenda.

Permalink Reply by Rhoda Collins on June 17, 2009 at 7:05

I do that on full/part after you said something to me, Brenda, will go define this one the same, lol!!

Permalink Reply by Karen Margolis on July 11, 2009 at 11:05

Would you hyphenate "in service" in the following instances?

Q When you say "active equipment," is that the same as in-service for revenue purposes?
A In-service revenue. It goes into revenue service, I should say.

Thanks for your help!

Permalink Reply by Brenda Rogers on July 11, 2009 at 12:41

Yes.