Hyphens

Hyphens are used to ‘glue’ words together to avoid confusion or ambiguity. However, in Danish and English, hyphens are used in different ways. Below, we have provided examples of when to use (and when not to use) hyphens in Danish and English.

1. Abbreviations    
   DK: CO₂-udledning
   UK: CO₂ emission
   
   DK: ph.d.-studerende
   UK: PhD student
    
2. Prefixes
   A prefix is a letter or set of letters placed before the stem word to form a different word. In English, the following prefixes are always hyphenated: ‘all-’, ‘cross-’, ‘ex-’ og ‘self-’. 
   
   DK: ekskone
   UK: ex-wife
   
   DK: selvbetjening
   UK: self-service
   
   If a prefix ends in the same vowel that the stem word starts with, you separate them with a hyphen, e.g. ‘re-election’.
    
3. Suffixes
   A suffix is a letter or set of letters added at the end of a stem word to form a different word. In Danish, hyphenated suffixes are mostly used in connection with abbreviations, whereas they are more commonly used with hyphens in English – and always after the following suffixes: ‘-type’, ‘-elect’ og ‘-designate’.
   
   DK: en IT-agtig person
   UK: an IT-like person
   UK: Please use 12-point bold-type font  
    
4. Omitted words
   DK: Erhvervs- og samfundsvidenskabelige discipliner
   UK: Business and social science disciplines
   
   Note! Always include a hyphen in compound adjectives if you omit a word. For example, ‘on-campus and off-campus teaching’ must be written ‘on- and off-campus teaching’ if you leave out the first ‘campus’.