15 words that don't really need a hyphen
Forming / / December 30, 2020
1. Fast food, not fast food
The concept that combines burgers, sausages in dough and shawarma came to us from the English language. In the original, it is written in two words: fast food. There were different spellings in Russian, but in spelling dictionaries fixed only one - solid.
2. "Slowly", not "quietly"
With the prefix "po" everything is not easy. There is a ruleAdverbs with the prefix "po" ending in "-th, -m, -ski, -tski, -i", according to which "po" with adverbs is written with a hyphen. However, it concerns only those words that end in "-th", "-mu", "-i", "-ski", "-tski", "-ki" and "-y". For example, “in English”, “new” or “still”. Slowly, the ending is different, so the spelling is continuous.
3. "Little things", not "little things"
And here is another rule. In this case, "by" is not a prefix, but pretext, which is written separately with nouns. You can check this by inserting a third between the two words (for example, "for any little thing").
4. "Well-known", not "well-known"
To write correctly, you need to distinguish between complex adjectives
Compound adjectivesthat require a hyphen (for example, "blue-green" or "physico-chemical"), from combinations adverbs and an adjective ("well known"). The difference is that the adverb can be matched with a clarifying question: known as? - broadly. This trick will not work with a complex adjective.5. "Economy class", not "economy class"
I really want to put a hyphen here by analogy with "business class", but you should not do that. "Economy class" is an abbreviated word that comes from "economy class" and is therefore written together. For example, the word "demo" - "demo version" is formed according to the same principle.
6. "Businesswoman", not "businesswoman"
Again, the insidious "business" is confusing. Business analyst, business lunch, or business conference are hyphenated. This is because each part is a separate word and can be used independently. But the word "woman" in Russian is not, therefore "businesswoman" is written together. As, by the way, the "businessman" - for the same reason.
7. Side-by-side, not side-by-side
Again, it's a matter of analogies. Most likely, you are guided by spelling "exactly". But this word refers to exceptions. The rest of the adverbial expressions, which consist of two nouns and a preposition, are written Separate spelling of adverbial expressions separately.
8. “Video conferencing”, not “video conferencing”
A concept that has firmly entered our life this spring. Despite the fact that almost everyone had to get acquainted with Zoom and other similar platforms, the word “videoconference»Many write with a mistake. Although everything is simple: you need to remember that complex words in which the first foreign language part ends in a vowel are written togetherConcatenated, hyphenated, and separate spelling rules.
9. Microeconomics, not micro-economics
Here the rule is the same as in the previous paragraph, but confusion still arises. And all due to the fact that in the Russian language there are words starting with "mini-". The meanings of "micro" and "mini" are very similar, but the spelling different. For example, "miniskirt" or "minibar". There is no separate rule for "mini", you just need to remember.
10. "Media file", not "media file"
Repetition is the mother of learning. Therefore, here is a third example of the continuous spelling of complex words with borrowed the first part that ends with a vowel. I would like to put a hyphen here because the word “online media” exists. But in this case, "media-" is at the end, and the hyphen is due rules spelling of the "online" part.
11. "Antimonopoly", not "anti-monopoly"
Everything is much simpler here. You just need to remember that words with foreign language prefixes (like "hyper-", "post-", "extra-" and others) are written togetherConcatenated, hyphenated, and separate spelling rules. Except the words with the prefix "ex-" in the meaning of "former" - "ex-president".
12. Super-smart, not super-smart
In Russian there is an independent word "super", so it seems that it always needs to be written separately or, as a last resort, through a hyphen. Don't give in to this urge. If "super" is part of another word, then it is a prefix and is written together: super smart, super game, super strength.
13. "Good old", not "good old"
The desire to write "good old" with a hyphen is quite understandable. After all, there are such words as “lived-were”, “walked-wandered”. They have a hyphen needed, because it stable expressionsparts of which are close in value. The adjectives "old" and "kind" characterize the subject from different sides, which means they are written separately.
14. Feng Shui, Not Feng Shui
The word "feng shui" came to us from the Chinese language, and before that the hyphenated spelling was really correct. But over time, the norms have changed. Now in the "Spelling dictionary of the Russian language" there is only one spelling variant - together.
15. Rush hour, not rush hour
No rules and no logic. We'll have to remember: "rush hour" is written separately.
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