{"id":3852,"date":"2020-10-19T16:25:07","date_gmt":"2020-10-19T16:25:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/english-speaking\/?p=3852"},"modified":"2021-04-07T16:53:22","modified_gmt":"2021-04-07T23:53:22","slug":"the-em-dash-magoosh-english-speaking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/english-speaking\/the-em-dash-magoosh-english-speaking\/","title":{"rendered":"Em Dash: The Versatile Grammar Tool You Can Use Today!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Click below to listen to a recording of this passage.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ah, the \u201cem dash\u201d. Every language has two paths, evolution or death. <\/span>Evolving<\/span> languages change with widespread use and new events and technology.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the last century, television and the internet sped up this natural evolution within every language, and that\u2019s <\/span>especially <\/span>true for English. In fact, <\/span>they update the Oxford Dictionary<\/span> four times every year just to keep up!<\/span><\/p>\n

But, what does that have to do with the em dash?\u2014I\u2019m getting there!<\/span><\/p>\n

Since the Internet took hold of our lives, punctuation in writing has become a contentious issue. Hundreds of thousands of bloggers and writers\u2014some <\/span>formally <\/span>trained in writing, and some <\/span>obviously <\/span>not\u2014now have a global platform where they can display content.<\/span><\/p>\n

With this endless stream of content, many of the oldest grammar and punctuation debates have now resurfaced. And the use of the dash, or <\/span>more specifically, <\/span>the <\/span>em dash<\/span><\/i> has been one of the most talked about grammar topics of the 21st century.<\/span><\/p>\n

In this blog, we will reveal (make known) and break down the rules of when and when not and where to use an <\/span>em dash<\/i><\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

(Prefer to watch this lesson on video? Here\u2019s our full length tutorial on how to use the phrase <\/span>\u2018The Em Dash\u2019):<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018The Em Dash\u2019:<\/strong><\/h2>\n