Hyphens

“at least 16-years of age”

Adjectives, Hyphens, Nouns

My wife saw this in an email message yesterday.

Problem:
The hyphenation is incorrect.

Explanation:
Here is the phrase as it appeared in the full sentence: “Please ask students who you think would really benefit from this experience and who are at least 16-years of age to complete the information.”

This phrase should not have a hyphen.

When a number modifies a noun (or noun phrase) to tell you how many, there should be no hyphen between the number and the noun (or noun phrase) that the number is modifying.

In the problematic phrase, the number “16” is modifying “years of age” (a noun phrase), so one should not insert a hyphen between them.

I believe that the writer of the email message was distracted by the fact that hyphens are required when one writes something such as “the 16-year-old student”. The reason for this requirement is that “16-year-old” is modifying “student”; the hyphens effectively glue “16” and “year” and “old” together to create a modifier of “student” (the noun).

Solution:
“at least 16 years of age”

“…, spectacular view properties, …”

Hyphens

I saw this in a full-page advertisement on the back cover of the latest “Continental” (Airlines) magazine.

Problem:
A hyphen is missing.`

Explanation:
This phrase appeared in an ad for Costa Rica’s Los Sueños Resort and Marina, so something could have gotten lost in the translation from Spanish to English.

Still, the advertising agency that placed this ad should have at least one native speaker of American English and should have caught this problem.

“With our 200-slip international marina, spectacular view properties, private beach club for residents, challenging 18-hole golf course, charming Marriott hotel and 600-acre rainforest reserve, we are truly Costa Rica’s premier residential resort community.” is the full sentence in which this phrase appeared.

The copywriter properly hyphenated the remainder of the sentence.

When an adjective (“spectacular”) plus a noun (“view”) modify another noun (“properties”), a hyphen must join the adjective and the first noun.

Therefore, what is missing in “spectacular view properties” is a hyphen between “spectacular” and “view”.

Solution:
“…, spectacular-view properties, …”

“A no non-sense approach”

Hyphens

I saw this in a brochure for a professional course and book.

Problem:
The hyphen is misplaced.

Explanation:
Wow. Talk about nonsense.

The publisher of the brochure ought to be ashamed, especially given the brochure’s target audience (professionals in a field that shall remain nameless).

First, the word “nonsense” does not have a hyphen between its two syllables.

Second, given that “no” plus a noun (“nonsense”) are modifying another noun (“approach”), a hyphen is required between “no” and “nonsense”.

It boggles my mind to imagine how the author of the brochure decided to write this headline in this way. Perhaps the decision was driven by fear of hyphenating incorrectly.

Solution:
“A no-nonsense approach”