En Dash vs. Em Dash
An en dash and an em dash are different marks. In Microsoft’s style guidance, the en dash is used for ranges and selected compounds, while the em dash marks a stronger sentence break or parenthetical interruption.
Use an en dash for ranges where the style calls for one; use an em dash for a strong break or parenthetical interruption.
Key details
Important caveats
Usage Boundary
Do not substitute hyphens, en dashes, and em dashes indiscriminately; spacing around dashes is a style decision and should follow the governing guide.
Further guidance
Em Dash
An em dash commonly marks a strong break, interruption, or parenthetical element in a sentence.
En Dash
An en dash is commonly used for numeric or date ranges and in selected compound constructions governed by style.
Practical Application
Use an en dash where the governing style uses it for ranges or relationships; use an em dash for a strong break, interruption, or parenthetical turn. Do not substitute one simply because both are longer than a hyphen.
Reader Check
Does the mark represent a range/relationship or a strong syntactic break?
Worked Example
A style may set “pages 10–18” with an en dash, while “The result—after three retries—was stable” uses em dashes for interruption.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- Dashes and hyphens — Microsoft Style Guide (opens in a new tab)Microsoft · En-dash and em-dash functions, including number ranges and sentence breaks