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Common Typographic Symbols and What They're For

These marks show up in books, articles, and everyday writing constantly, even though most people never learn their names or exact rules.

Em dash (—)

The longest common dash, used to set off a break in a sentence or an abrupt change in thought — like this — often functioning like a more dramatic comma or parenthesis. Named because it was traditionally about as wide as the letter "M" in a given typeface.

En dash (–)

Shorter than an em dash, traditionally about the width of the letter "N." Commonly used to indicate a range, such as "pages 10–20" or "the 2020–2024 term," rather than to interrupt a sentence.

Hyphen (-)

The shortest of the three, used to join compound words ("well-known") or break a word across a line. Often confused with the en dash and em dash since many keyboards only offer the hyphen key directly.

Ampersand (&)

A stylized symbol representing the word "and," historically derived from the Latin word "et" written as a single connected character. Common in brand names and informal writing, but usually avoided in formal prose in favor of spelling out "and."

Ellipsis (…)

Three dots indicating omitted text or a trailing-off thought. Style guides differ on whether to use the single ellipsis character or three separate periods with spacing, but both represent the same idea.

Section mark (§)

Used mainly in legal and academic writing to refer to a specific numbered section of a document, as in "§ 12.3." Rarely seen outside of formal legal or regulatory citation.

Pilcrow (¶)

The paragraph mark, historically used to indicate the start of a new paragraph in dense text. Today it mostly survives as the "show formatting marks" symbol in word processors, marking the end of each paragraph.

Why dash length carries real meaning

Em dash, en dash, and hyphen look similar but are not interchangeable in careful typesetting — each has a distinct traditional use (interruption, range, and word-joining, respectively), even though everyday typing on a standard keyboard often collapses all three down to the single hyphen key out of convenience.

Some marks are keyboard-shortcut symbols now

Several of these characters (em dash, en dash, ellipsis) require a keyboard shortcut or an autocorrect feature to type directly on most keyboards, which is part of why many casual writers substitute a plain hyphen or three periods instead, even when a style guide technically calls for the proper character.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it wrong to use a hyphen instead of an em dash?

In casual writing it is extremely common and rarely confuses anyone. Formal style guides used in publishing, academia, and professional documents generally do call for the correct, longer dash where one is intended.

Why does "&" look like that?

It evolved from a handwritten ligature of the Latin word "et" (meaning "and"), with the curved shape gradually becoming its own distinct symbol over centuries of use.