Hyphen symbol (-)
U+002D · HYPHEN-MINUS · Unicode 1.1 (1993)
How to type -
Windows
Alt code (numeric keypad)
Alt+45
Turn on Num Lock, hold the Alt key, type 45 on the numeric keypad and let go of Alt: - appears.
Uses the old DOS code page 437, which US-English Windows uses for Alt codes without a leading 0; on Windows set to other languages the result can differ.
Word and Outlook: Alt + X
002D Alt+X
Type 002D and press Alt+X right after it: Word turns the code into -. Press Alt+X again to turn it back into the code.
Emoji and symbols panel (Windows 10 and 11)
Win+.
Press Win + full stop (.) to open the panel, go to the Symbols tab (Ω) and pick -.
No numeric keypad on your laptop? See the other ways in our Alt codes guide.
Mac
Character Viewer
Ctrl+⌘ Cmd+Space
Press Ctrl+⌘+Space (or the Globe key + E), search for “hyphen symbol” and click - to insert it.
iPhone
Make a shortcut (Text Replacement)
Turn a short word into - once and type it in any app:
- Copy - from this page.
- Open Settings › General › Keyboard › Text Replacement and tap +.
- Paste - as the Phrase and type a Shortcut, for example ;hyphen.
- Now type ;hyphen anywhere: the keyboard suggests -.
Android
Make a shortcut (Gboard personal dictionary)
Teach your keyboard a short word that turns into -:
- Copy - from this page.
- Open Gboard settings › Dictionary › Personal dictionary, choose your language and tap +.
- Paste - as the word and type a shortcut, for example ;hyphen.
- Type ;hyphen in any app and tap - in the suggestions.
Linux
Unicode input
Ctrl+Shift+U 002d Enter
Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 002d and press Enter or Space. Works in GTK apps and with IBus (GNOME, Ubuntu, Fedora).
What - means and how it is used
The key next to 0 types the hyphen-minus (U+002D), which serves as both a hyphen and a minus sign. It joins compound words (well-known) and splits words at line ends. Unicode also has a dedicated hyphen U+2010 and a minus sign − (U+2212), but most text uses the keyboard character. URLs and file names prefer it to spaces.
In Unicode, - is code point U+002D with the official name HYPHEN-MINUS. It belongs to the Basic Latin block and arrived with Unicode 1.1 in 1993.
Other words for it: dash, hyphen, minus.
You will find it in our punctuation, 109 symbols in all, together with © ® ™ § ¶.
Codes for HTML, CSS and JavaScript
Tap Copy next to the code you need.
| HTML decimal | - | |
|---|---|---|
| HTML hex | - | |
| CSS | content: "\002D"; | |
| JavaScript | \u002D | |
| URL | - | |
| UTF-8 bytes | 2D | |
| Unicode | U+002D |
Will it show on my friend's phone?
Very likely yes: - dates from Unicode 1.1 (1993), so every current system has a font for it.
Checking your device…
Don't confuse - with
These look alike but are different characters. Search, sorting and screen readers treat them differently, so copy the one you mean.
- -Hyphen symbolU+002D · HYPHEN-MINUS
- En dashU+2013 · EN DASH · General Punctuation
- Em dashU+2014 · EM DASH · General Punctuation
- Modifier letter minus signU+02D7 · MODIFIER LETTER MINUS SIGN · Spacing Modifier Letters
- HyphenU+2010 · HYPHEN · General Punctuation
- Non-breaking hyphenU+2011 · NON-BREAKING HYPHEN · General Punctuation
- Figure dashU+2012 · FIGURE DASH · General Punctuation
Names in other languages
What - is called in the 12 languages of this site (Unicode CLDR and our editors). Tap a name to open that language's page.
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
| English | Hyphen symbol |
| Português | Hífen |
| Español | Guion |
| Italiano | Trattino |
| Français | Trait d'union |
| Deutsch | Bindestrich |
| Türkçe | Kısa çizgi (tire) |
| Bahasa Indonesia | Tanda hubung |
| Polski | Dywiz (łącznik) |
| Русский | Дефис |
| 日本語 | ハイフン記号 |
| 한국어 | 하이픈 |
Related symbols
All Punctuation →Questions people ask
How do I type - on a laptop without a numeric keypad?
On Windows press Win + full stop (.) and pick - in the Symbols tab, or in Word type 002D and press Alt+X.
What is the difference between - and –?
- is the hyphen symbol (U+002D). – is a different character: en dash (U+2013, General Punctuation block). They can look alike, but computers treat them as different letters, so a search for one will not find the other.
How do I type - on an iPhone?
The iPhone keyboard has no key for -. Copy it here, then add it in Settings › General › Keyboard › Text Replacement with a shortcut like ;hyphen.
What is the HTML code for the hyphen symbol?
There is no named entity; use - or -. In CSS write \002D, in JavaScript \u002D.
Will - show on every phone?
Very likely yes: - dates from Unicode 1.1 (1993), so every current system has a font for it.