![]() It’s a technique that’s often used when authors transcribe verbal communications. To Signal an InterruptionĮm dashes can signal an interruption, particularly in dialogue and other forms of written speech. Let’s take a closer look at each way you can effectively use this versatile punctuation mark in your sentences: 1. Finally, you can use em dashes as an alternative to parenthesis. On the other hand, they can substitute missing information or missing parts of a word. All you have to do is to copy the symbol from somewhere like a web page, or the character map for windows users, and head over to where you need the symbol (say in Word or Excel), then hit Ctrl+V to paste. What’s more, an em dash can also signal a sentence break when you want to clarify something or give extra focus to a list of items. Copy and Paste En Dash Sign (text) Another easy way to get the En Dash Symbol on any PC is to use my favorite method: copy and paste. Use the em dash to indicate an interruption or an abrupt change in thought. It has multiple uses, making it a especially useful in informal writing or fiction. What is an Em Dash Used for?Īn em dash is the longest of the dashes. Between hyphen and en dash, there’s em dash, one of the most versatile punctuation marks that you can use. This versatile symbol helps adding structure, clarity, and even personality to otherwise complex sentences. When a comma or colon isn’t enough, or you want to avoid using parentheses, the em dash may be the punctuation mark for you. An em dash can replace commas, parentheses, and colons.Typically, you shouldn’t include a space before or after the em dash.Long dashes help add clarity, signal a break, or indicate an interruption in a sentence. ![]() They often help emphasize specific information. When you think of an em dash, think of emphasis.An em dash is about the width of the letter ‘M’, which is where it gets its name.Type em dashes by pressing Alt+0151 for Windows or Shift+Option+Minus (-) for Mac.They are much wider than en dashes and are also called long dashes.The “Replace with” string inserts the single number found, the two numbers found together, an en dash, the same single number found (using \1 again), and the last two numbers found, giving us this: The “Find what” string finds a single number (one through nine, in the first group), followed by any two numbers (in the second group), followed by a hyphen, followed by any two numbers (in the third group). So what’s the deal with the ) Replace with: Put a checkmark in the “Use wildcards” box.Īll those multiple spaces will be replaced by a single space-in one operation!.If the “More” button is showing, click it.In the “Replace with” box, type a single space.In Word’s “Find what” box, type a single space.Display Word’s “Replace” dialog by pressing CTRL + h on your keyboard.But there is a better solution: Use wildcards. In that case, you’ll need to hit “Replace all” multiple times to clean up the problem. ![]() Or, worse, the professor has used multiple spaces to indent paragraphs or do other kinds of formatting. Unless, as often happens, old Professor Griggs has been sloppy and sometimes used three spaces in a row. Turning two spaces into one is easy enough: just put two spaces in Microsoft Word’s “Find what” box, one space in the “Replace with” box, and hit the “Replace all” button. Those of us who learned to type on an actual typewriter were taught to put two spaces between each sentence, supposedly to help with readability, and there are still plenty of academics who cling to that outmoded practice. Wildcard Search #1: Replacing Double Spaces In fact, I’m going to give you seven easy wildcard searches you can use right now to help clean up that manuscript and beat that deadline. Using wildcards is not as hard as you might think. If only you knew how to use wildcard find and replace! But now that deadline is looming, and there’s still a lot of work ahead. Your anguished cry rings out in the middle of the night: “Why, oh why, did I accept this stupid freelance job?” You know the answer: The client offered you twice as much money as you’d ordinarily get for a job like this because the deadline is tight.
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