Is a hyphen required or is the proper use of it subjective?

Question

My question is as stated in the title.

In a very famous article, I noticed the author used the word - "nonexperiment". I looked up the word and it is not actually a word, so I believe it should be written as "non-experiment". Am I wrong? Furthermore, my professor used the word binwidth, and it is not a word. Thus, I would write it as bin-width, but only because it is not a word.

I believe grammar and sentence structures are not explicitly well defined. But I do believe there are general definitions, and on top of that, experts in writing have extended the definitions based on their own opinion. Thus, even though I consider myself a beginner in writing, I would rather accept and use the words "nonexperiment" and "binwidth".

My professor considers himself as a terrible writer, but I like his style because it is not difficult for me to understand. Is it possible he used the word - "binwidth" incorrectly?

pinguina · Accepted Answer

At the outset I should warn you that not all style manuals are alike.  With that out of the way, here is probably the most relevant excerpt from The Chicago Manual of Style:

When using this guide (a return to the tabular format of
earlier editions of this manual), consult the preceding
paragraphs in this section (7.77–84)—especially if a
relevant example cannot be found. In general, Chicago prefers a
spare hyphenation style: if no suitable example or analogy can
be found either in this section or in the dictionary, hyphenate
only if doing so will aid readability. Each of the four
sections of the following table is arranged alphabetically (by
first column). The first section deals with compounds according
to category; the second section, with compounds according to
parts of speech. The third section lists examples for words
commonly used as elements in compounds. The fourth section
lists common prefixes, most of which join to another word to
form one unhyphenated word; note especially the hyphenated
exceptions, not all of which agree with Webster’s. (Compounds
formed with suffixes—e.g., nationhood, penniless—are almost
always closed.)

The fourth section of the table referred to here gives these guidelines:

The Associated Press Stylebook is another good (and perhaps more user-friendly) resource.

user66807 · Answer

Generally now, hyphenation is only used for clarity or to avoid confusion. The exception would be compound modifiers, which once you begin to hyphenate (as most people do not) you notice when they're missing.

I go for the unhyphenated "non." Or un-hyphenated. In time the hyphens will drop out of these terms, as they always do.

Is a hyphen required or is the proper use of it subjective?

2 Answers

Add your own answers!

Ask a Question