You're welcome, Marcia! Thanks for your comment. :)

Happy to hear it. Thanks, Angie!

Hi Brian,

I wouldn't use a hyphen before the word 'science' in this sentence. Are you sure that 'systems science' and 'decision science' are correct? I might reword like this: '25 years' experience helping clients improve venture success' or '25 years' experience helping clients improve venture success by providing communication and decision-making guidance.'

Best of luck to you!

Hi Julie,

Unfortunately, not all dictionaries agree! At ESL Library, we follow these reputable dictionaries, which all list 'good-looking' with a hyphen:
- Merriam-Webster for US spelling: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/good-looking
- Oxford Dictionaries for UK spelling: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/good-looking
- Oxford Canadian for Canadian spelling (not online—my paperback version's entry is only 'good-looking')

It's tough (and confusing for students) when dictionaries don't agree, but that's the reality of some words in English. It's interesting that yourdictionary.com also has an entry for 'good-looking' with the hyphen. For this word, since most dictionaries prefer the hyphenated term and don't even list the unhyphenated version as an alternative, I'd stick with 'good-looking.'

Hope that helps!

Hi Gary,

Unfortunately, there are many cases where it would make sense to hyphenate modifiers but it's more common not to. My own pet peeve is 'English language learners.' You could definitely say 'English-language learners' because the 'learners' are learning the 'English language,' but it's not common, so I try not to do it. I think it's because you could also say the 'language learners' are learning 'English,' so 'English language learners' doesn't need hyphens.

Compare this with 'five-minute break.' The 'minute break' isn't 'five.' The 'break' is 'five minutes,' so we need the hyphen.

In your example, I would say that you could hyphenate (the 'programme' is a 'technical-asset-renewal' one), but it's not necessary (and probably not as common). I'd stick to no hyphens if you can break it down another way (e.g., the 'renewal program' is a 'technical asset' one).

Hi Maria,

'20th-century-inspired tapestry' is the clearest form. Don't forget to spell out 'twentieth' if it is the first word in a sentence. :)

Thanks, Marci! Wow, that phrase is a doozy! I'd suggest rewording to something like 'Cultural knowledge of areas where German, British English, French, and European Portuguese are spoken.'

It's difficult when there is a serial list AND multiple words involved. If you really didn't want to reword, I think you'd have to include hyphens between all the words before the commas for clarity (so “Cultural knowledge of German-, British-English-, French- and European-Portuguese-speaking areas'), but it is still awkward to read.

Hi Kathy,

Good question! First let's tackle the easy one, 'brown dog hair.' Since we can say the 'dog hair' is 'brown,' not the 'hair' is 'brown-dog.' So this is an example of a cumulative set of adjectives, and there's no hyphen required.

Now for the tough one. Is the 'account offer' 'new'? Yes, so we don't need a hyphen. But is the 'offer' for a 'new account'? Also yes, so a hyphen should technically be correct. I agree with you that it looks weird, though. And I myself wouldn't use a hyphen here. I'd say that if the parts can be broken down (the 'account offer' is 'new' / the 'offer' is for a 'new account'), then skip the hyphen (so 'a new account offer'), but if the parts can't be broken down (the 'run' was '20 kilometers' but the 'kilometer run' wasn't '20'), then stick with the hyphen (so 'a 20-kilometer run'). Hope that helps!

Hi James,

Thanks for your thought-provoking comment! There is a lack of consistency even between dictionaries and style guides, so you're not alone in your frustration. I admire your goal to be consistent. As an editor, I am trained to be consistent within a document or website at all costs, even when there's a lack of consistency in the general field.

You're correct about the North American trend to lose the hyphen. I see more and more entries in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and the Chicago Manual of Style where the hyphen has been dropped from words. Oxford Dictionaries are gradually following suit, and I think this trend will continue. I believe this shortening of words and lack of punctuation is mostly due to social media and other online factors. Sometimes this wars with the rise of plain language, where the goal is to make everything easier to read/comprehend (hyphens can help readers, especially language learners, I believe). However, I think this hyphen-dropping trend will only become more prevalent.

It's interesting that some of the biology terms are losing the participial form (leaved, spined) and using the noun form (leaf, spine). This isn't something I've seen a lot, but I would think it's a further change in the name of shortening and clarifying.

As for your final question, I believe the short answer is that some words just haven't gotten around to being changed yet. For example, Merriam-Webster has entries for good-looking and never-ending, whereas they've dropped the hyphens and gone with the one-word form for countless other entries. Sometimes this could be due to readability (i.e., some words just wouldn't be clear without the hyphen), but I think it's more likely that they haven't been changed yet, but will indeed change sometime soon.

In my work, I often go for the modern, one-word, unhyphenated form if it exists in a reputable dictionary. However, if all my sources list it with a hyphen, I'll stick with the hyphenated word.

I hope this answers your questions! I'll reiterate that consistency within your document/website/etc. is the most important factor.

Hi Zeni, I'd definitely go with 'sugary-sweet-looking kids.' If you say 'sugary sweet-looking kids,' you're essentially saying that the sweet-looking kids are sugary, which isn't your meaning.