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Dipsik Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

HYPHENATING PREFIXES

Hello everybody,

could someone knowledgeable tell me whether there are any rules for (not) using hyphens with prefixes like 'over' and 'sub'?

Is it better to write 'sub-standard' or 'substandard?

'over-valued' or 'overvalued'

'counter-productive' or 'counterproductive'

'pre-cooked' or 'precooked'

'semi-circular' or 'semicircular'

'anti-freeze' or 'antifreeze'

'sub-standard' or 'substandard'?

I understand that for example 'coowners' would look weird, but what about 'under-estimate'?

Thanks for any help with this

Lenny
  

Top answer

If you're unsure about hyphenation with prefixes, it's easiest to look in a dictionary. For example, any dictionary will reassure you that "underestimate" is unhyphenated. Generally, I suppose the better established the compound, the more likely it is to be accepted unhyphenated.

— Mr Wordy

  • If you're unsure about hyphenation with prefixes, it's easiest to look in a dictionary.
  • For example, any dictionary will reassure you that "underestimate" is unhyphenated.
  • Generally, I suppose the better established the compound, the more likely it is to be accepted unhyphenated.
  • In debatable cases, I believe that BrE tends to use hyphens more than AmE, and I have read that overall the use of hyphens in English is slowly declining.
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1 Answers
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If you're unsure about hyphenation with prefixes, it's easiest to look in a dictionary. For example, any dictionary will reassure you that "underestimate" is unhyphenated. Generally, I suppose the better established the compound, the more likely it is to be accepted unhyphenated. In debatable cases, I believe that BrE tends to use hyphens more than AmE, and I have read that overall the use of hyp
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