The En Dash vs. the Em Dash

A brief primer on the difference between the two

I know they can seem confusing, but there isn’t much to learn. Once you get the four basics down — two for en dashes, two for em dashes — you’ll be all set.

EN DASHES
If you were to list the span of dates for the First World War, you’d write it as 1914–18 when you’re not writing 1914 to 1918, which is fine (note that you would spell out the full years if the dates span two centuries: 1998–2003). That dash may look like a hyphen,¹ but it is not. It’s an en dash, which is slightly longer than a hyphen. Similarly, the en dash is used when things get paired or linked together: Democratic–Republican debate, Boston–New York train.

Now, notice the difference between these two: London-born artist and New York–born artist. That’s a hyphen for the London example but an en dash for New York. The trick is easy to remember: When you have multiple words, use an en dash: New York City–born artist.

EM DASHES
I put the em dash to use in two ways — and only in two ways. That sentence you just read is the first example. It indicates a “sudden” or added-on thought at the end of a sentence.

Em dashes are also great — Hey, look at the birds! — for indicating an interruption of thought…