On 05/15/2015 at 07:35 AM, Chris Bannister wrote: > On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 09:16:17AM +0100, Anthony Campbell wrote: >> Since we're well off-topic already, I can't resist citing a rather >> similar and increasingly prevalent negative usage that makes no >> sense. I quite often read the phrase: "the importance of this >> cannot be underestimated". It should, of course, be OVER-estimated, >> or alternatively "must not be under-estimated". I think the two >> usages have > > Nooooo! Why does it need a hyphen? To help indicate that you're separating out (and thus focusing on) the first half of the compound word, while still indicating that you're using the compound word rather than (incorrectly) the matching two-word phrase. > What is it with all these hyphens that people are sticking between > words these days? I can't speak to all of them, but in a large fraction of cases, they're extremely helpful for communicating the way in which you intend words to group together. I've done (and am still, perpetually, working on) an extensive, informal study of word grouping, pauses in speech, the way the latter can interact with the former, and the ways to represent both in text. It's a complex and, at least to me, interesting subject. -- The Wanderer The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. -- George Bernard Shaw
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