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Index H
- hacker
- haemo-
- Haida
- hail
- hail-fellow-well-met
- hair-brained
- hale
- hale and hearty
- Halifax
- Haligonian
- Halloween
- Hallowe’en
- hang
- hanged
- Hanukkah
- hare-brained
- hash mark
- have a grasp of
- have no choice but to
- have no option but to
- have the ability to
- have the capability of
- have the capability to
- head of government
- head of state
- headquarter
- headquartered
- headquarters
- healthful
- healthy
- hecto-
- height
- heli-
- helicopter view
- helio-
- hemi-
- hemo-
- henceforth
- hepat-
- hepato-
- hereby
- herein
- hereinafter
- hereof
- hereto
- heretofore
- hereunder
- herewith
- heter-
- hetero-
- Hiberno-
- hiccough
- hiccup
- Hindi
- Hindustani
- hipp-
- hippo-
- hirable
- hireable
- His/Her Honour
- Hispano
- historic
- historical
- history
- hoard
- Hogtown
- hoi polloi
- hold in abeyance
- homo-
- homographs
- homonyms
- homophones
- Hon.
- honor
- honorary
- honour
- Honourable (1)
- Honourable (2)
- honourary
- honours and decorations
- Hoosier
- hopefully
- horde
- hors d’oeuvre
- hoser
- hosier
- host
- hostess
- House of Assembly
- however
- Hudson Bay
- Hudson’s Bay
- humorist
- humorous
- humour
- humourless
- hung
- Hungaro-
- hydr-
- hydro
- hydro-
- hydroelectric
- hyper-
- hyphens: compound adjectives
- hyphens: compound nouns
- hyphens: compounds beginning with adverbs
- hyphens: fractions
- hyphens in number-plus-noun compounds
- hyphens: introduction
- hyphens: nouns with adjectives and participles
- hyphens: nouns with gerunds
- hyphens: numbers and units of measurement
- hyphens: numerals and single letters
- hyphens: prefixes
- hyphens: spelling and enunciation
- hyphens: suffixes
- hyphens: suspended compounds
- hyphens: titles of office
- hyphens: verbs
- hyphens: word division
- hypo-
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hyphens: nouns with gerunds
A gerund is a present participle used as a noun (e.g. making, solving). In a compound formed from a noun plus a gerund, the use of a hyphen depends on how the compound is being used in the sentence.
Used as a noun
When compounds formed from a noun plus a gerund function as nouns, they are not hyphenated.
Some noun-plus-gerund compounds are written as one word:
- housekeeping
- shipbuilding
- sightseeing
- cabinetmaking
Others are written as separate words:
- decision making
- power sharing
- problem solving
- deficit spending
Exception:
- foot-dragging
Used as an adjective
When a noun-plus-gerund compound that is normally written as two separate words is used as an adjective before a noun, it should be hyphenated:
- the decision-making process
- a power-sharing agreement
- problem-solving techniques
- a deficit-spending plan
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