Strictly speaking, the en dash is the width of an N, an em the width of a M
(capital letters). In general terms this makes an en dash about twice as
long as a hyphen in a typical font, an em dash three times as long. The
distinction of en and em dash uses varies between U.S. and U.K. usage, as I
learned to my chagrin after a long exchange with a user who I thought was
trying to make an en dash do something it wasn't meant to do!

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"Bernard Liengme" wrote in message
...
Length. The en dash is the length of the letter n while the emdash is (you
guessed it!) the length of the letter m.
When to use one or the other is a matter of style. Go to web and locate
Chicago Univ style as an example.

best wishes

--
Bernard Liengme
www.stfx.ca/people/bliengme
remove CAPS in email address


"PreciousIvy" wrote in message
...
What is the difference between an en dash and an em dash?