Brackets are most commonly used to immediately describe a word or thought inside a sentence, while dashes are used to introduce or emphasize a new thought into a sentence to clarify its intent.

What are brackets and dashes used for?

Brackets are most commonly used to immediately describe a word or thought inside a sentence, while dashes are used to introduce or emphasize a new thought into a sentence to clarify its intent.

When should dashes be used?

1. To set off material for emphasis. Think of dashes as the opposite of parentheses. Where parentheses indicate that the reader should put less emphasis on the enclosed material, dashes indicate that the reader should pay more attention to the material between the dashes.

How do you use dashes in parentheses?

Em dashes in place of parentheses If you want to draw attention to the parenthetical content, use dashes. If you want to include the parenthetical content more subtly, use parentheses. Note that when dashes are used in place of parentheses, surrounding punctuation should be omitted. Compare the following examples.

What is the effect of using dashes in a sentence?

In effect, a dash allows you to redefine what was just written, making it more explicit. You can also use a dash as it is used in the first sentence of this paragraph: to frame an interruptive or parenthetical-type comment that you do not want to de-emphasize.

What is difference between em dash and en dash?

There are two types of dash. The en dash is approximately the length of the letter n, and the em dash the length of the letter m. The shorter en dash (–) is used to mark ranges. The longer em dash (—) is used to separate extra information or mark a break in a sentence.

How do you use dashes?

It’s longer than a hyphen and is commonly used to indicate a range or a pause. Dashes are used to separate groups of words, not to separate parts of words like a hyphen does. There are three forms of dashes: em, en, and the double hyphen. The most common types of dashes are the en dash (–) and the em dash (—).

What is the difference between long and short dash?

Long dashes — what grammarians call em dashes — are dramatic. Those long straight lines draw your eye and hold your attention. Short dashes show a range or connect words when the word to or and is implied.