Read the following passage about compound words and hyphens.
A study of more than 10,000 compound words has found that four basic rules, regarding when to use a hyphen, will work 75 per cent of the time.
If the compound word is a verb (like to blow-dry), or an adjective (like world-famous), it probably needs a hyphen. For nouns with two syllables, like break-up and set-to, the rule is easy: use a hyphen only when the second word has two letters. If the second part of the word has more than two letters, it should be spelled as a single word, like coastline or bedroom. This explains why hotdog is not hyphenated. Finally, if the noun has three or more syllables, it is two separate words. Examples here include bathing suit and washing machine.
Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer, who is a linguistics professor at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, produced the simple set of rules after examining thousands of English words. She worked alongside a programmer and a statistician to find the patterns in the English language. She said: “A whole range of factors can have an influence on how compound words are typically spelled. But on a general level, it all boils down to a few simple guidelines.” She has published exceptions to the rules, and additional guidelines for hyphens, in a book called ‘English Compounds and their Spelling’.
(Adapted from www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech)
Answer each question below with just ONE word.
- How many different rules for the use of hyphens did the study identify?
- Are these rules always correct?
- Do compound adjectives usually need a hyphen?
- Do we normally use a hyphen when a compound noun has more than two syllables?
- Did the linguistics professor carry out this research alone?
1) four
2) No
3) Yes
4) No
5) No
Posted by: Alex | Monday, July 23, 2018 at 18:30
1. Four
2. No
3. No
4. No
5. No
Posted by: Mohammed Basheer | Monday, July 23, 2018 at 19:42
1. 3
2. NO
3. NO
4. NO
5. NO
Posted by: Mesut | Monday, July 23, 2018 at 19:49
1- four
2- No
3- Yes
4- No
5- No
Posted by: Justine | Monday, July 23, 2018 at 21:00
1. 4
2. No
3. No
4. No
5. No
Posted by: Ashwini | Monday, July 23, 2018 at 22:15
1.Three
2.No
3.No
4.No
5.No
Posted by: Karim | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 00:01
1.3 (rules)
2.no (have exceptions)
3.yes
4.no
5.no (with a programmer)
Posted by: Yuki | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 00:44
1. four
2. no
3. yes
4. no
5. no
Posted by: Thi | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 01:51
1) four
2) No
3) Yes
4) No
5) Yes
Posted by: Rajashish Chakrabortty | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 04:02
1. four
2. no
3. yes
4. no
5. no
Posted by: CCLT | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 04:04
Should "will work 75 per cent of the time" be considered "always"?
Posted by: Anonymous | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 04:29
4
No
No
No
No
Posted by: Raju | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 04:34
1. four
2. no
3. yes
4. no
5. no
Posted by: Bloom | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 04:52
1. four - 4 basic rules
2. no - will work 75 per cent of the time
3. no - an adjective needs a hyphen
4. no - example: washing machine, bathing suit
5. no - she worked alongside a programmer and a statistician.
Posted by: arch1001face | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 04:57
four
no
no
no
no
Posted by: Queenie | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 05:02
I am gonna answer the first question that there are four, but in fact, the post just give us three details like three basic rules.it makes us confused,and not only me because i saw several people answered three .thanks for reading my idea.
Posted by: kyky | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 05:46
Three
No
Yes
No
No
Posted by: Minh Long | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 07:56
4
No
Probably
No
No
Posted by: Cuckoo | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 08:04
1. 4
2. No
3. No
4. No
5. No
Posted by: Tran Thanh Phuong | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 08:33
1. 4
2. NO
3. YES
4. NO
5. NO
Posted by: Tinh | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 08:35
1. four
2. No
3. Yes
4. No
5. No
Posted by: Luu | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 08:56
1.4 basic rules, regarding when to use a hyphen
2.No - Will work 75 percent of the time
3.No
4.No -If the second part of the word has more than
2 letters, it should be spelled as a single word
5.No - She worked alongside a programmer and a statistician to find the pattern in the English language
Posted by: Natrada | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 09:03
1. Four
2. No
3. Yes
4. No
5. No
Posted by: Lài Trần | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 09:22
1)2
2)No
3)Yes
4)No
5)No
Posted by: Pachu | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 12:16
4
N
YES
N
N
Posted by: Hao | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 12:49
Three (rules)
NO
YES
NO
NO
Posted by: Babak | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 13:59
1)Four
2)No
3)Yes
4)No
5)No
Posted by: Behnam | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 14:15
1 four
2 no
3 yes
4 no
5 no
Posted by: ravi | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 16:02
CORRECT ANSWERS FROM SIMON:
1. Four
2. No
3. Yes
4. No
5. No
Posted by: Simon | Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 17:04
1. four
2. NO
3. yes
4. No
5. No
Posted by: Rojina | Wednesday, July 25, 2018 at 06:38
1.four
2.no
3.yes
4.no
5.no
Posted by: oscar | Wednesday, July 25, 2018 at 07:52
3. no: probably needs a hyphen=maybe yes maybe no
Posted by: manar | Thursday, July 26, 2018 at 11:55
Four
No
Yes
No
No
Posted by: Ngan | Tuesday, July 31, 2018 at 04:35
4
No
Yes
No
No
Posted by: Lalit | Tuesday, July 31, 2018 at 05:47
1. four
2. no
3. yes
4. no
5. no
Posted by: Mai Tran | Tuesday, July 31, 2018 at 17:03
Thank you Simon!
Posted by: Helen Mirren | Wednesday, August 01, 2018 at 20:12
1. four
2.No
3.probably
4.not
5.No
Posted by: Dilpreet kaur | Friday, August 03, 2018 at 04:45
four
no
yes
no
no
Posted by: Amin Madahi | Sunday, August 12, 2018 at 09:25
4
no (because sometimes it can be exceptions)
yes
no
no (is it general research)
Posted by: Kerem | Monday, August 20, 2018 at 09:49
Four
No
Yes
No
No
Posted by: MOTAZ Fadlelseed | Tuesday, September 04, 2018 at 11:45
Four
No
No
No
No
Posted by: MOTAZ Fadlelseed | Tuesday, September 04, 2018 at 11:47
Four
No
Yes
No
No
Posted by: Giang | Tuesday, October 16, 2018 at 15:07