5 Cases of Extraneous Hyphenation with Numbers

5 Cases of Extraneous Hyphenation with Numbers 5 Cases of Extraneous Hyphenation with Numbers 5 Cases of Extraneous Hyphenation with Numbers By Mark Nichol The combination of numbers, spelled out or in numerical form, and hyphens is a volatile mixture that often confuses writers. Here are five sentences in which hyphens are erroneously inserted into constructions that do not require them, with explanations and corrections. 1. â€Å"Four-percent of adults may have ADHD.† There’s no reason to combine four and percent. The writer might have incorrectly extrapolated from the use of fractions in the same type of construction (â€Å"One-third of respondents agree with the statement†), but the sentence should read, â€Å"Four percent of adults may have ADHD.† 2. â€Å"Astronomers say an object five-times bigger than Jupiter is the first planet outside our solar system to be imaged.† The reference to the exoplanet’s magnitude of size in comparison to Jupiter requires no linking hyphen. The misunderstanding perhaps arises from the fact that â€Å"five times† modifies bigger, but bigger is an adjective, not a noun, and words combining to modify adjectives are not hyphenated. The correct form is â€Å"Astronomers say an object five times bigger than Jupiter is the first planet outside our solar system to be imaged.† 3. â€Å"This monk began his vow not to speak with a 2-1/2 year walk up the coast.† Writers often erroneously insert a hyphen between a whole number and a fraction in a mixed fraction. It’s not necessary, but it is required between the mixed fraction and the noun that follows when they combine to modify another noun, as in this example: â€Å"This monk began his vow not to speak by taking a 2 1/2-year walk up the coast.† (2 1/2 is considered a single element, so omit the intervening hyphen.) Note, too, the slight revision to eliminate the suggestion that the monk conversed with a 2 1/2-year walk up the coast. 4. â€Å"The electrified border, 10-feet-high, is to be completed across the border with India.† If this sentence used the phrase â€Å"10 feet high† as a modifier preceding â€Å"electrified fence† (â€Å"a 10-foot-high electrified fence†), the hyphens linking the elements as a unified description would be valid. But in a simple reference to physical dimensions, no hyphens are necessary: â€Å"The electrified fence, 10 feet high, is to be completed across the border with India.† 5. â€Å"You must have a keen sense of how to capture the attention of the 18-34 year-old news junkie.† This sentence tries to observe the basic rule about connecting the numbers in a range (preferably with an en dash rather than a hyphen) but errs in its failure to recognize the special case of suspensive hyphenation that overrules that usage. The sentence refers to a demographic cohort consisting of 18-year-old news junkies and 34-year-old news junkies and all news junkies in between. When using a range involving a number compound, elide most of the first element, retaining only the number (spelled out or in numeral form) and a hyphen, followed by a letter space: â€Å"You must have a keen sense of how to capture the attention of the 18- to 34-year-old news junkie.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:85 Synonyms for â€Å"Help†Capitalization Rules for Names of Historical Periods and Movements20 Names of Body Parts and Elements and Their Figurative Meanings