hyphen

hyphen
[ˈhʌɪf(ə)n]
noun

the sign (-) used to join words to indicate that they have a combined meaning or that they are linked in the grammar of a sentence (as in pick-me-up, rock-forming), to indicate the division of a word at the end of a line, or to indicate a missing or implied element (as in short- and long-term)
连字号（-）（连接单词，表示其意义的结合，或在句中有语法联系［如pick-me-up, rock- forming］，表示单词于行末分行，或表示有缺省部分［如short- and long- term］）

verb

语源

early 17th cent.: via late Latin from Greek huphen 'together', from hupo 'under' + hen 'one'

用法

In modern English the use of hyphens is in general decreasing, especially in compound nouns: website is preferred to web-site, and air raid to air-raid. Hyphens are still often employed where a compound expression precedes a noun, as in first-rate musicians or twenty-odd people (twenty odd people means something quite different!), but even in this context there is a growing trend to omit them. When a phrasal verb such as build up is made into a noun it is usually hyphenated (a build-up of pressure). Note, however, that a normal phrasal verb should not be hyphenated: write food to take away not food to take-away, and continue to build up your pension not continue to build-up your pension

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