How To Use Dashes Act

These 3 punctuation marks are probably the most confusing pieces of punctuation that you will encounter on test day.

How to use dashes act. After reading the handout you will be better able to decide when to use these forms of punctuation in your own writing. Let s look at some examples. 1 dashes can set off a non essential clause. When the dash is used in this way it creates a compound adjective. They tend to confuse test takers most but their usage is pretty straightforward.

Most commonly a dash connects an independent clause with another with a related thought plus a conjunction like or but yet as for and after the second dash. Dashes can do a good many things. See the following examples. Use an en dash when you need to connect terms that are already hyphenated or when you are using a two word phrase as a modifier. We can t for instance start with a comma and end with a dash.

The en dash may also be used to indicate a connection between two words. Finally dashes can be used to create a break in a thought they force the reader to stop for a fraction of a second before continuing on to whatever idea comes next. For example here s a sample sentence. Includes score reports and progress tracking. This handout explains the most common uses of three kinds of punctuation.

3 to create a dramatic pause. The dash works somewhat like parentheses or commas but it is used where a stronger punctuation is needed. What this handout is about. 4 dashes can send the sentence in another direction. They are used to create a slight sense of drama or suspense.

Single dashes function in the same way as colons. There are two ways to use dashes in a sentence each one with a distinct purpose. Here s an overview of how they re used with examples. Create a free account today. 3 dashes can create a pause.