Should I use punctuation after a URL?
When you write a web address at the end of a sentence, should you follow it with punctuation, or use no punctuation (to help avoid breaking the web link)? The post Should I use punctuation after a URL?...
View ArticleQuickly insert an n-dash or m-dash in Microsoft Word
It is easy to use the n-dash and m-dash in Microsoft Word. You've probably noticed that they get inserted automatically sometimes: Here's how it works... The post Quickly insert an n-dash or m-dash in...
View ArticleInsert an n-dash or m-dash on a web page or blog
Using the n-dash and m-dash when you are creating a webpage or a blog post can seem confusing, but really it is quite easy and you don't need to be an HTML genius to do it... The post Insert an n-dash...
View ArticleUsing the semicolon with conjunctive adverbs like ‘however’
Using words like 'however' (a conjunctive adverb) within a sentence sometimes seems clunky and can make sentences hard to read. This is a clear explanation of using a semicolon to solve this problem....
View ArticleThe difference between a dash and a minus sign
A reader asked about the difference between a minus symbol and an N-dash (thanks Tem). I had to do a bit of homework on this. Unicode (the standard for electronically encoding text information) has...
View ArticleType an n-dash or m-dash on a tablet, iPhone or Android phone
Punctuation on a smartphone is a problem sometimes. As a result, many people almost give up on punctuation when they use Twitter and other online tools that are most often used from a mobile device....
View ArticleWhat Does Nonplussed Mean?
The word nonplussed has a different meaning than many people think. Nonplussed seems to be taking on an entirely new meaning simply because it is misused so often, by so many writers. Often, you can...
View ArticleThe en dash, em dash and hyphen (also ndash and mdash, n dash and m dash or...
In lots of writing, the use of dashes is very inconsistent – regardless of how 'professional' the writers are. The hyphen, dash, n-dash and m-dash crop-up all the time in Microsoft Word but most of us...
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