What does hyphenating mean?
Hyphenating is the act of connecting words with a hyphen, especially when two or more elements form a compound expression. It also describes inserting a hyphen to show where a word may be divided at a line or page break. The result is commonly called a hyphenated compound, while the noun hyphenation names the process or the result. In editorial and technical writing, hyphenating helps writers handle compound adjectives, prefixes, line breaks, and other conventions consistently. Because a hyphen may affect meaning or pronunciation, its use is governed more by style guides and house conventions than by ordinary word choice. The word is common in both British and American English and is especially useful when discussing spelling, typography, editing, or the mechanics of writing. Hyphenating therefore denotes both a practical editorial action and a linguistic concern: deciding where a compound should remain joined and where a visible mark should guide the reader.
verb (present participle)Joining two or more words with a hyphen, especially to form a compound expression. It can also refer to inserting a hyphen to show where a word may be divided at a line or page break.
- Joining words or word elements with a hyphen to form a compound expression.
- Inserting a hyphen to indicate a permissible division of a word or compound at a line or page break.
"The editor spent the afternoon hyphenating compound adjectives to make the style guide consistent."
"The copy editor is hyphenating compound adjectives according to the publisher's style guide."
"The typesetting software automatically hyphenates long words when they reach the end of a line."
Hyphenating traces back to Greek for "under one"—a surprisingly grand beginning for the tiny mark that binds words together.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does hyphenating come from?
The English family begins with hyphen, borrowed through French from Greek huphen, meaning "under one" or "together." The Greek form is commonly analysed as hupo- ("under") and phēn ("sound"), while the English verb hyphenate was formed from the noun and gave rise to hyphenating. Hyphenation and hyphenate remain transparent members of the same word family.
Related word forms
How hyphenating is actually used
Hyphenating is standard in editorial, typographic, and computing contexts. British and American English both use the term, although particular style guides may differ in which compounds they hyphenate.
Easily confused with hyphenating
Hyphenating is the action of placing hyphens, whereas hyphenation names the process, result, or typographic practice.