-

See also: :- and Appendix:Variations of "-"

- U+002D, -
HYPHEN-MINUS
,
[U+002C]
Basic Latin .
[U+002E]

Translingual

Symbol

-

  1. The hyphen-minus, a catch-all symbol for certain dash and dash-like characters.
    1. (hyphen)
    2. (minus sign)
    3. (figure dash)
    4. (en dash)
    5. (em dash)
    6. (horizontal bar, quotation dash)
    7. (sports) skip
      Coordinate terms: X (fail), O (success) 
    8. (chemistry) A single bond.
    9. Used as a placeholder for a missing value (e.g. time, date, number)

Usage notes

The hyphen-minus (-) has multiple uses as a compromise introduced in the early days of fixed-width typewriters and computer displays. However, proper typesetting may require the use of more specific characters rather than the hyphen-minus. Nonetheless, the usage persists since the hyphen-minus is easy to enter on keyboards, well known, and at the same place in all common character sets.

See also

  • ֊ (Armenian hyphen)

Punctuation

Further reading

Letter

  1. A long signal, used to form Morse code text, together with . (a short signal).
  2. Visual rendering of Morse code for T. (Latin)
  3. Visual rendering of Morse code for Т. (Cyrillic)

See also

Finnish

Punctuation mark

-

  1. Delimits parts of compound words
    1. when a part ends in the same vowel the next part starts with.
      linja + autolinja-auto
    2. (optional) when the former part ends in a vowel and the next part starts with a vowel, to avoid ambiguity or to help readability.
      laulu + iltalauluilta ~ laulu-ilta (compare lauluilta (elative form))
    3. (optional) when a part ends in a consonant and the next part starts with a vowel, to avoid ambiguity or to help readability.
      punos + aitapunosaita ~ punos-aita
    4. in certain dvandva or coordinative compounds where the parts are considered 'equal'.
      parturi + kampaajaparturi-kampaaja
    5. when at least one of the two parts
      1. contains a space (a space is written before the hyphen if the previous part contains a space, and vice versa, but not both).
        stand up + koomikko → stand up koomikko
      2. is a proper noun in the nominative case (unless it has been assimilated to the point it is no longer capitalized), chiefly in words that are not themselves proper nouns.
        Suomi + kuva → Suomi-kuva
      3. (optional) is a proper noun in the genitive case (unless it has been assimilated to the point it is no longer capitalized), for clarity and to avoid ambiguity.
        Saksan + matkaSaksan-matka (trip to Germany) (compare Saksan matka (trip to Germany, Germany's trip))
      4. is an abbreviation, acronym or initialism (optional if it is the final component and spelled in lowercase).
        NATO + jäsenyys → NATO-jäsenyys
      5. is a letter, number or symbol.
        20 + -vuotias → 20-vuotias
        C + vitamiiniC-vitamiini
      6. is a particle or a word treated as such.
        ei + toivottu → ei-toivottu
      7. (in some cases) is an unadapted loanword.
  2. Represents omission of repeated parts of compound words in a list ("suspended hyphen").
    syntymäaika ja paikka = syntymäaika ja syntymäpaikkadate/time (of birth) and place of birth
    mansikka-, mustikka- ja vadelmahillo = mansikkahillo, mustikkahillo ja vadelmahillostrawberry (jam), bilberry (jam) and raspberry jam
  3. Used for hyphenation or splitting words across lines.

Usage notes

  • Called yhdysmerkki, yhdysviiva or väliviiva when used in the senses related to compound words.
  • Called tavuviiva when used for hyphenation.
  • More properly written (U+2010 HYPHEN), but U+002D HYPHEN-MINUS is ubiquitous in the computing world.

French

Wiktionary does not have any French dictionary entry for this term. This is because the term has not yet been shown to be attested in a way that satisfies our criteria for inclusion.
Some information about this term is available in -re (-s).
You can help us collect durably archived uses of this word at Citations:-.
If this term meets our criteria for inclusion, please create an entry for it or request that it be created.

Greek

Letter

  1. Visual rendering of Morse code for Τ.

Hebrew

Letter

  1. Visual rendering of Morse code for ת.

Japanese

Punctuation mark

-

  1. (rare) A romanization of the (long vowel mark).
    To-kyo-

Letter

  1. Visual rendering of Morse code for .

Khoekhoe

Pronunciation

Punctuation mark

-

  1. Used to separate elements of a compound word when the second begins with an orthographic vowel (phonemic glottal stop).

Korean

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese . This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term. Probably from Japanese. Was it ever actually pronounced as a long vowel?

Punctuation mark

-

  1. (obsolete) long vowel mark
    • (Can we verify(+) this quotation?)
      크리스마쓰(クリスマス)씨-ㄹ(シール)()結核豫防運動()억센(力強き)씸볼(シンボル)[1]
      Keuriseumasseu ssīr-eun gyeolhaek yebang undong-ui eoksen ssimbol
      Kurisumasu shīru wa kekkaku yobō undō no chikarazuyoki shinboru
      Christmas seals are a strong symbol of the tuberculosis prevention movement
      compare Japanese シール (shīru)
    • 三養라-면
      스-프添付
      [2][3]
      Samyang rāmyeon
      Se͞upeu cheombu
      Samyang ramyon
      Soup included
      from Samyang Ramen
      compare Japanese ラーメン (rāmen), Japanese スープ (sūpu)

References

Swedish

Symbol

-

  1. (politics) Replaces the party designation of an independent politician.
    Synonyms: oberoende, partilös, politisk vilde, utan partibeteckning
    Anna Beskved (c) och Anders Bertilsson (-)Anna Beskved (Centre Party) and Ander Bertilsson (independent)
    • For quotations using this term, see Citations:-.
  2. (SAB) Specifying a geographic division of the aforementioned topic.
    Ab-cLibraries in Sweden
    Qaea-jMonetary system in France

Punctuation mark

Examples (omission of repeated part)

-

  1. Represents omission of repeated parts of compound words in a list.
  2. Used for hyphenation or splitting words across lines.

Thai

Letter

  1. Visual rendering of Morse code for .
  2. Visual rendering of Morse code for .