Definify.com

Definition 2024


U+2014, —
EM DASH

[U+2013]
General Punctuation
[U+2015]
See also: , , -, , and

Translingual

Punctuation mark

  1. Indicate that a sentence is unfinished because the speaker has been interrupted.
  2. Demarcates parenthetical thought. See — —.
  3. Indicates a logical consequence. See also : (the colon).
    • 1962, Jack Frohlichstein, Mathematical Fun, Games and Puzzles, Courier Corporation, ISBN 9780486207896, page 9:
      Bet anyone he can't correctly name the next highest number to every number which you will give him. []
      43 — he will say 44
      87 — he will say 88
      123 — he will say 124
  4. Indicates aposiopesis, an abrupt breaking-off in speech. See also (the ellipsis).
  5. Separates a term from its definition.
    • 2011, Adam Rizvi, Click Start to Begin: Windows XP Basics, Click Start Publishing Ltd., ISBN 9780956780706, page 22:
      Refresh This will refresh the current folder, updating it with any new files or settings.
  6. Indicates a lack of data in a table[1]
  7. Alternative form of (horizontal bar; quotation dash; introduces a line of dialogue)

Quotations

For usage examples of this term, see Citations:—.

Derived terms

Usage notes

In English, this symbol is called em dash.

Derived terms

  • (small form variant)
  • (vertical variant)
  • (two-em dash)
  • (three-em dash)

See also

Punctuation

References

  1. Joan G. Nagle, Handbook for preparing engineering documents: from concept to completion, 1995, p. 114:
    We can use the word none or N/D (no data), or insert an em dash; any of these entries show that we haven't simply forgotten to fill the cell. N/A is commonly used for not applicable. It's good practice to footnote N/A or N/D the first time it is used.

Russian

Verb

() impf

  1. Indicates zero (omission) of the present tense of быть (bytʹ). Called тире́ (tirɛ́) in Russian.
    Вре́мяде́ньги.
    Vrémja — dénʹgi.
    Time is money.

Usage notes

  • "—" is not used when the subject is a pronoun; e.g., я ру́сский (ja rússkij, I am Russian).