Who created the em dash?

Martha Nell Smith, a professor of English at the University of Maryland and the author of five books on the poet Emily Dickinson (the original em dash obsessive), said that Dickinson used the dash to “highlight the ambiguity of the written word.” “The dash is an invitation to the reader to make meaning,” Dr.
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Why is it called em dash?

In fact, the em dash is named after its length—it's about the same width as the capital letter M. Its alphabetical cousin, the en dash, is about the same width as the letter N. Figuratively speaking, the hyphen pulled the short end of the stick.
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Are em dashes unprofessional?

Whichever style you choose, use it consistently throughout your document. Remember, em dashes are not interchangeable with hyphens. Using a single hyphen instead of an em dash can confuse readers and make your writing look unprofessional.
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Why do authors use the em dash?

It is the doppelgänger of the punctuation world, a talented mimic impersonating other punctuation, but not exactly, leaving space to shade meaning. This space allows different authors to use the em dash in different ways, and so the em dash can be especially revealing of an author's style, even their character.
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What does the em dash mean?

The Em Dash: An Introduction

Like commas and parentheses, em dashes set off extra information, such as examples, explanatory or descriptive phrases, or supplemental facts. Like a colon, an em dash introduces a clause that explains or expands upon something that precedes it.
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The Em Dash | Punctuation | The Nature of Writing



Can an em dash begin a line?

Em dashes can end or start a line. In most text typefaces, em dashes have no side bearings, which make them appear very close to the words they separate. If this bugs you, feel free to add some kerning space around them, but don't add too much.
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How do I type an em dash?

How to Type an Em Dash on Android
  1. Tap the “? 123” button in the lower left of the screen to get to the punctuation, then tap and hold the hyphen button.
  2. After a moment, a small menu will pop up above the key.
  3. Select the em dash (the longest dash) here.
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Is the em dash named after Emily Dickinson?

Martha Nell Smith, a professor of English at the University of Maryland and the author of five books on the poet Emily Dickinson (the original em dash obsessive), said that Dickinson used the dash to “highlight the ambiguity of the written word.”
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Are em dashes overused?

Em dashes are extremely versatile, but they should not be overused. If you have an em dash in every other paragraph, for instance, take a moment to come up with a different sentence construction or punctuation mark instead. Overuse dilutes their emphasis and can make your writing choppy.
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Is the Oxford comma?

The Oxford comma is the comma placed before the conjunction at the end of a list of things. For example, in “the flag was red, white, and blue”, the Oxford comma would be the one appearing before “and”. Proponents of the Oxford comma say it's necessary for removing ambiguity in sentences.
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What is the longest dash?

The em-dash (“—”) is the longest dash in common use. It comes most commonly in pairs and has a function similar to parentheses (i.e. to break the flow of thoughts).
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What is the floating comma called?

This final comma, known as an Oxford or serial comma, is useful in a complex series of elements or phrases but is often considered unnecessary in a simple series such as in the example above. It usually comes down to a style choice by the writer.
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Can an em dash replace a semicolon?

An em dash is a punctuation mark that can be used to replace commas, parentheses, colons, and semicolons. In general, the em dash is seen as being more interruptive or striking than other punctuation, so it is often used stylistically to draw a reader's attention to a particular bit of information.
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What is the difference between en dash and em dash?

In addition, this dash can form complex compound adjectives as well. The en dash is a mid-sized dash—in between the size of an em dash and a hyphen. En dashes are half the width of the em dash and size of an uppercase N—if the font size is 12pts, the en dash is 6pt wide.
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How many dashes are there?

There are three forms of dashes: em, en, and the double hyphen. The most common types of dashes are the en dash (–) and the em dash (—). A good way to remember the difference between these two dashes is to visualize the en dash as the length of the letter N and the em dash as the length of the letter M.
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What is a 3 em dash?

Create a 3-em dash by entering the em dash three times or six hyphens. You can find the em dash in the symbol drop-down menu in Microsoft Word. Alternatively, press CTRL + ALT + minus key on the numeric keypad, three times. If you're using the proper font (Times New Roman 12), the three dashes will make a solid line.
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Do em dashes have to be in pairs?

The em dash is typically used without spaces on either side, and that is the style used in this guide. Most newspapers, however, set the em dash off with a single space on each side. Most newspapers — and all that follow AP style — insert a space before and after the em dash.
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Why does Emily Dickinson use so many dashes?

While Dickinson's dashes often stand in for more varied punctuation, at other times they serve as bridges between sections of the poem—bridges that are not otherwise readily apparent. Dickinson may also have intended for the dashes to indicate pauses when reading the poem aloud.
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Why do people use double dashes?

Double dashes are used instead of commas (or parentheses) to interrupt a sentence. The phrase separated by dashes must be grammatically inessential, by which I simply mean that the sentence will still work without that phrase.
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Why do poets use dashes in poems?

The lines in the poem are split into fragments by these dashes and beauty of a dash is that is allows the continuation of a sentence without a blunt end such as a semicolon or period, instead the reader is visually able to move from one fragment to the other following the line.
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How do you make an en dash on a Chromebook?

If you use a Chrome OS device, you can insert both an em dash and en dash without taking your hands away from the keyboard. Press Shift-Ctrl-U, type the numbers 2014 (one by one), and press spacebar. You'll see an em dash (Figure C). For an en dash, try the same sequence, but use the numbers 2013.
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How do I make an em dash in Google Docs?

Click on your document where you want to insert the dash, open the “Insert” menu, and then click “Special Characters.” After the tool opens, type “em dash” or “en dash” into the search bar and then click the symbol from the results on the left.
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Do dashes have spaces?

When typing, use two hyphens together without spaces to form a dash. Do not put a space before or after the dash. Some word-processing programs have a mark called an em-dash (longer than a hyphen), which can be used with no space before or after it.
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How do you make an em dash on a laptop?

If you have a numeric keyboard, hold down the Alt key and type 0151 for an em dash or 0150 for an en dash.
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