The common reader may believe punctuation to be minutia compared to other components of a written work, but editors know better. Using punctuation correctly—or incorrectly—can affect the work’s overall tone and message. And one of the most questioned punctuation marks is the suspensive hyphen. Let’s dive into what it is and when to use it. (Spoiler alert: Major style guides, and yours truly, support using this hyphen!)
Dropping the Second Term
The question of a suspensive hyphen—that is, the use of a hyphen in a compound that omits the second part of the compound because it is repeated immediately in the next hyphenated compound—is largely one of style.
Two major style guides—The Chicago Manual of Style (CMoS) and The AP Stylebook (AP)—recommend using the suspensive hyphen, though neither offer much by way of explanation. They show examples of the form and not much else:
- CMoS: fifteen- and twenty-year mortgages
- AP: He received a 10- to 20-year sentence in prison.
CMoS also allows for solid compounds to be suspended the same way, as long as the second halves of the words are the same:
- both over- and underfed cats
I find the suspensive hyphen useful. It clarifies meaning without cluttering the sentence with too many hyphens. I’d recommend using it, as long as the style guide you’re following prohibits permits it.
Dropping the First Term
Not all style books address the question of whether to eliminate the first part of the compound when the terms are the same. One that does is CMoS and it allows it for hyphenated compounds but not closed compounds. In section 7.95 it gives as examples:
- state-owned and ‑operated hospitals
- overfed and overworked mules (not overfed and ‑worked mules)
Unless you follow one of the styles that explicitly outlines whether you can drop a repeated first term in a compound, then the choice is up to you. It’s worth noting that dropping the first term isn’t as common as dropping the second term, and dropping the second term doesn’t occur often, either. Both formats should be used sparingly in one document and the meaning should be crystal clear.
A version of this article originally published in the February–March 2016 and October–November 2015 issue of Copyediting newsletter.
