CHAPTER19
Hyphens, Dashes, Parentheses, and Brackets
In This Chapter
- The hyphen: a joiner of words
- The em and en dash: two similar marks with different purposes
- How (and why) to use parentheses
- Where [and when] to use brackets
This chapter deals with punctuation marks that cleave, which is an interesting word: it is its own antonym (opposite). To cleave is to bring together, and to cleave is also to separate.
The punctuation marks in this chapter cleave in both senses: hyphens, dashes, parentheses, and brackets bring together some elements of words or sentences while separating others. They are very useful in writing clear, flowing prose.
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