Hyphenated compound words

[george_bass]

Hello there,

I've always wanted to make the following question about hyphenated compound words, you know, as in the following couple of examples:

well-respected man
on site visits

Since I've seen the hyphen removed in many occasions, I'd want to know if they can actually be turned into spaced words like these:

well respected man
on site visits

It seems to me that hyphenated compound words are constantly evolving. As far as I know writers are free to create their own, aren't they? This would certainly add a bit of hassle to this issue.

[moderntimes]

The normal process of evolution for compound words is 1- two separate words, 2- hyphenated, 3- blended as 1 word.

For example, the term for the computer memory insert used for backups. It could easily be "thumb drive" or "thumbdrive", although the compound word is likely to be rejected by spellcheckers, as this just was. This specific term however doesn't lend itself to hyphenation.

Just off the top of my head, another example, a type of handgun cartridge, 1- "hollow point", 2- "hollow-point", and then 3- "hollowpoint". Which illustrates the evolution of English compound words.

So yes, words are constantly evolving. Your "on site" is likely now preferred as "on-site" and may eventually morph into "onsite" after a couple of years.

I have this problem myself, because I tend to write breezy fiction and in my recent mystery novel, I compounded quite a few words which aren't legally allowed as compound, and have to be either 2 words or hyphenated. So when my book came back from the publisher's edit review, some of these were flagged. It was no big deal to me, so I relented on the majority of them and changed them back to 2 separate words. They included "TexMex" now "Tex-Mex", "cherrytops" now "cherry-tops" (police cars), and "multipane" now "multi-pane".

[katiesquilts]

I prefer using hyphenated words, especially if the first word is a noun modifier. For example, he is not just a respected man, he is a man who is respected well, so he is a well-respected man. Spell check sometimes insists that I use a space instead, but I usually ignore it. I've never just smashed two words together to make a compound. You wouldn't write "can't" as "cant" or "don't" as "dont" would you? Adding the space (or hyphen) makes it easier to read.

[moderntimes]

Of course, hyphenated is preferable for adjectives, like "well-respected man". That's part of the general rules of English.

But if the word is a compound word, like Tex-Mex, the hyphen can be removed.

The analogy to hyphenated words is slightly invalid, I think.

[george_bass]

Thank you for bringing some light into this matter, I really appreciate it.

[moderntimes]

Glad to provide my thoughts on the matter. Taking a little break after my new book was released, till I get back into harness on book #4.

[george_bass]

Hi again,

I am sorry to resurrect this thread after so long time, but now I'm a bit curious about the word goodbye. Which of the following look correct to your eyes?

goodbye
good-bye
good bye

I think all three are OK. Anyway, what's your opinion about this word's spelling?

Thank you!

[Booky_BettyC]

I don't think I've ever seen it hyphenated. I have seen it broken into 2 words before. That was a very long time ago though. I would say that goodbye would be correct. I believe the hyphen was used a while ago until it got "phased out" so to speak. That being said, I'm not awesome with the specifics of grammar. Those are just my thoughts and what I've seen when I did some research for a book review a few months back.?

[george_bass]

I would say that goodbye would be correct.

Thank you Booky_BettyC for your reply! That was helpful. Goodbye, then.

-- 14 Sep 2016, 13:17 --

Hi,

I share this group of words that I recently found regarding this issue:

laid back
laid-back
laidback

This is fun!

[Vivian Paschal]

I prefer using hyphenated words for clarity. They're easier for readers to understand, especially if I coin them myself.

[BoyLazy]

The normal process of evolution for compound words is 1- two separate words, 2- hyphenated, 3- blended as 1 word.

For example, the term for the computer memory insert used for backups. It could easily be "thumb drive" or "thumbdrive", although the compound word is likely to be rejected by spellcheckers, as this just was. This specific term however doesn't lend itself to hyphenation.

Just off the top of my head, another example, a type of handgun cartridge, 1- "hollow point", 2- "hollow-point", and then 3- "hollowpoint". Which illustrates the evolution of English compound words.

So yes, words are constantly evolving. Your "on site" is likely now preferred as "on-site" and may eventually morph into "onsite" after a couple of years.

I have this problem myself, because I tend to write breezy fiction and in my recent mystery novel, I compounded quite a few words which aren't legally allowed as compound, and have to be either 2 words or hyphenated. So when my book came back from the publisher's edit review, some of these were flagged. It was no big deal to me, so I relented on the majority of them and changed them back to 2 separate words. They included "TexMex" now "Tex-Mex", "cherrytops" now "cherry-tops" (police cars), and "multipane" now "multi-pane".

?

[vmarie+]

To hyphenate or not to hyphenate, that is the question. Lately, I was discredited for using "other-worldly" (now it's otherworldly) and "cliff hanger" (now it's cliffhanger or, less preferred, cliff-hanger). The online dictionary clearly indicates current usage. Henceforth, I'll be using that dictionary!