Student's guide to writing college papers, Fourth edition - Kate L. Turabian 2010
Hyphenated words
Spelling: plurals, possessives, and hyphenation
Style
A compound word or a compound modifier may be hyphenated, left open (with a space between elements), or closed (spelled as one word). To find out which form to use, check your dictionary first. If you cannot find a compound there, follow the principles in the following sections to decide whether or not to hyphenate. If you cannot find the form in either place, leave the compound open.
The patterns outlined below are not hard-and-fast rules. You will have to decide many individual cases on the basis of context, personal taste, or common usage in your discipline. Although much of the suggested hyphenation is logical and aids readability, some is only traditional.
21.4.1 Words Formed with Prefixes (and Prefix-like Prepositions)
21.4.1.1 The General Rule
Words formed with prefixes are normally closed (spelled as one word), whether they are nouns (postmodernism), verbs (misrepresent), adjectives (antebellum), or adverbs (prematurely). This pattern also applies to prepositions such as over and under that can be attached to words in the same position as prefixes (overachiever, underhanded).
21.4.1.2 Special Cases That Call for Hyphens
Use a hyphen between a prefix and the word it precedes in these cases:
Prefix + capitalized word:
sub-Saharan, pro-Asian, anti-American, un-American, trans-Siberian
Prefix + numeral:
pre-1950, mid-'80s, pro-3M, neo-'60s
Prefix + compound (hyphenated or open):
non-coffee-drinking, post-high school, pro-American dream
Stand-alone prefix in a compound phrase:
pre- and postwar, pro- and anti-Asian, over- and underachievers
Doubled prefix:
sub-sub-Saharan, sub-subclaim, post-postmodern, mega-megatrucks
Doubled letters at junction of prefix and root:
NOT: antiintellectual BUT: anti-intellectual
NOT: megaandroid BUT: mega-android
NOT: protooncologist BUT: proto-oncologist
NOT: cyberrage BUT: cyber-rage
Combinations that may be confused with other words:
re-cover (cover again) vs. recover, re-creation (created again) vs. recreation
21.4.2 Compounds Used as Adjectives
In most cases, hyphenate such a compound when it precedes the noun it modifies; otherwise leave it open.
21.4.3 Compounds Used as Nouns
In most cases, compounds used as nouns are open.
master builder, middle class, decision making, cooking class
Many frequently used compounds are closed.
bookkeeper, handyman, birthrate, notebook
Only in special cases are compound nouns hyphenated (see 21.4.4).
21.4.4 Compounds Normally Hyphenated
The following compounds are normally hyphenated, no matter how or where they are used. In some cases, individual compounds that are especially common are closed (check your dictionary). Any exceptions are noted.
Age terms:
a three-year-old, three-year-old children, a fifty-two-year-old woman, eight- to ten-year-olds
all- (adjectives):
all-American player, all-out effort, all-encompassing rule, the rule is all-encompassing
Note: Adverbial all-forms are open: went all out, looked all around
cross-:
cross-checked pages, cross-referenced term, a cross-reference, go cross-country
Note: Some forms are closed: crossbow, crossover
e-:
e-marketing, an e-mail message, e-commerce, an e-book page
-elect:
president-elect, mayor-elect, chairwoman-elect
Exception: Multi-word elected offices are open: district attorney elect, county delegate elect
ever-:
ever-ready helper, ever-recurring problem
Note: everlasting
ex-:
ex-boyfriend, ex-marine, ex-CEO, ex-kindergarten teacher
Familiar phrases (standardized with hyphens):
Jack-of-all-trades, stick-in-the-mud
Fractions:
a two-thirds share, two-thirds done, four-fifths majority, seven-sixteenths
Exception: Use only one hyphen per fraction: one and three-quarters, three fifty-thirds
Note: Combinations of one-word fractions plus nouns follow the general rule: an eighth note, a half mile, a half-mile run, the run was a half mile long
Functional pairs (that could also be written with and):
city-state government (i.e., city and state), a nurse-practitioner, student-teacher internship, Arab-Israeli peace, Russian-English dictionary
great- (kinship):
great-grandmother, great-grandfather, great-aunt
-in-law:
son-in-law, mother-in-law, cousin-in-law
-odd:
twenty-odd points, 350-odd students, a hundred-odd dollars
on-:
on-screen, on-site
Note: Many on- words are closed: online, onboard, ongoing
Proper nouns, shortened:
Anglo-Saxon culture, Afro-American studies, the Franco-Prussian War, the Sino-Soviet bloc
self-:
self-realization, self-sustaining, self-conscious
Note: unselfconscious
-style:
Chicago-style pizza, '60s-style music, southern-style cooking, English-style riding
21.4.5 Compounds Normally Open
The following compounds are normally open (no hyphens), no matter how they are used. In some cases, individual compounds that are especially common are closed (check your dictionary). Any exceptions are noted.
-book:
reference book, coupon book, comic book
Note: checkbook, cookbook, textbook
Chemical terms:
hydrogen peroxide, sodium chloride solution
Colors:
bluish green water, the eyes are emerald green, red and green outfit
Note: Black and white follows the standard pattern: the print is black and white, a black-and-white print
Comparative constructions:
less prepared students, most talented athletes, those athletes are most talented
Note: Add a hyphen if readers might be confused over what the term modifies:
We hired more skilled workers to fill in for the holidays (i.e., more workers who are skilled).
Our training program produces more-skilled workers (i.e., workers who are more skilled).
-general:
attorney general, postmaster general
-ly adverbs:
highly regarded teacher, widely known singer, partially chewed food
Modified by a preceding adverb:
-percent:
5 percent, a 10 percent increase, your score was 86 percent
Note: Use Arabic numerals.
Proper nouns:
African American students, a Chinese American lawyer, the North Central Region, State Department employees, she is French Canadian
21.4.6 Compounds Normally Closed
The following compounds are normally closed. Any exceptions are noted.
-ache:
toothache, stomachache, heartache
-borne, -like, or -wide:
foodborne, childlike, doglike, systemwide, wordwide
Exception 1, proper nouns: Chicago-wide, Obama-like
Exception 2, three or more syllables: mosquito-borne, handkerchief-like
Exception 3, repeated letters: meadow-wide, bell-like
Directions:
Two directions: northeast, northwest, southwest, southeast
Three directions: east-northeast, north-northwest, south-southeast
Note: north-south, east-west, northeast-southwest, southeast-northwest
grand- (kinship):
grandfather, grandmother, granddaughter, grandnephew
step- (kinship):
stepmother, stepfather, stepson, stepgranddaughter