An en dash, –, separates ranges for dates, numbers, and quantities-like 9–5 and January–August.
![three em dash for mac three em dash for mac](http://circlexaser.weebly.com/uploads/1/3/3/5/133571013/463439873_orig.png)
It’s also used as a sort of pause to emphasize something-something important at the end of a sentence. An em dash, -, is used to set off a phrase-one in the middle of the sentence-that’s not quite a parenthetical, but it isn’t so germane as to be set off by commas.(There’s an exception for some compounds see below.) A hyphen, -, separates words in phrases, as in “least-used product” and is used for line breaks in books and other matter.If you're not familiar with the difference among these dashes, the simple explanation for standard American usage is: The long dash also has a particular visual identity that provides the eye with a cue to take a long mental pause, one that's not nearly long enough with the en dash.
#Three em dash for mac software
It’s inconsistent, because it’s unlikely that nearly every other piece of software in use other than TeX that offers an autocorrection for - will change its behavior to match Apple’s. It’s confusing, because typing two hyphens will no longer produce the expected result for those paying attention.
![three em dash for mac three em dash for mac](https://img.techwallacdn.com/300x250/ppds/771f50fb-05be-43ca-bd48-fc3b6b0c1f74.png)
If one wants an em dash, one is now forced to type or tap three characters rather than two. I’d therefore argue this is inefficient, confusing, and inconsistent. I may be exaggerating the number, but given that Microsoft Word,* Pages, and other desktop software performs this substitution silently, it’s a widespread convention being overturned. Second, a billion people have learned that typing - leads to a long dash.
![three em dash for mac three em dash for mac](https://blokspeed.net/sites/blokspeed/files/styles/header/public/2017-12/8374850916_e6c1338c66_o.jpg)
First, most people rarely use an en dash, although I’d like to increase that number. You type more hyphens to get a longer dash. Why is this terrible news? Some have argued with me on Twitter that it’s more logical: - for hyphen, - for the longer en dash, and - for the longest em dash. If you type a number and two hyphens, it turns into a – (en dash). Update: In the release version, Apple contextually replaces - with - (em dash) to connect words when you type with or without spaces on either side.