Wikipedia:How to make dashes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The hyphen-minus (keyboard hyphen), en dash, em dash, and mathematical minus/negative symbols are different . Pressing the - on your keyboard, usually next to the 0 (zero) key, will produce a hyphen-minus. Methods of producing the other characters are described below.
 | This help page is a how-to guide. It explains concepts or processes used by the Wikipedia community. It is not one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, and may reflect varying levels of consensus. |
Methods that work on any platform
| - + − | |
|---|---|
hyphen-minus, plus, minus signs compared |
The CharInsert toolbar
To insert a dash or minus sign, use the toolbar below the edit box. Click where you want the character to be inserted, select "Insert" from the pull-down menu, and then:
- To insert an en dash (–), click on the first character (the shorter dash).
- To insert an em dash (—), click on the second character (the longer dash).
- To insert a minus sign (−), click on the
−between the±and the×.
Templates or HTML codes
- For an en dash, type
{{ndash}}or–.- For a spaced ndash, use the template
{{spaced ndash}}– or, more commonly, its shortcut{{snd}}– since this template also provides the essential non-breaking space before the dash. Alternatively, the raw HTML –sequence could be used but will clutter the source text needlessly.
- For a spaced ndash, use the template
- For an em dash, type
{{mdash}}or—. - For a minus sign, type
{{minus}}or the HTML code&minus.
Copy and paste
Find an en dash (–), an em dash (—), or a minus sign (−) already in some text—in this sentence, for example—and paste it where a new one is wanted.
Platform-dependent methods
Mac
For Mac (or iOS with an external keyboard) use:
- ⌥ Opt+- (en dash) or ⌥ Opt+⇧ Shift+- (em dash).
Alternatively for Mac:
- Pull down the Input menu and select Show Emoji & Symbols. Then select from Punctuation.
- If the Input menu is not displayed, open Language & Region within System Preferences. Then click on Keyboard Preferences... and check Show input menu in menu bar.
Linux
- Use AltGr- (en dash) or AltGr⇧ Shift- (em dash).
If you have a compose key:
- Use Compose--. (en dash) or Compose--- (em dash).
Windows
For Windows on a keyboard with a numeric keypad:
- Use Alt+0150 (en dash) or Alt+0151 (em dash) using the numeric keypad.
iOS and Android
For iOS (iPhone and iPad) and Android:
- Hold the - (hyphen) on the on-screen keyboard until a popup appears with choices, including the en dash and em dash.