268. Hyphenated Compound Nouns

Sometimes a compound noun is two words connected with a hyphen. (-)
A hyphenated compound noun looks like this: self-esteem
The two nouns, self and esteem, joined with a hyphen make a new word.
This new compound word has a meaning all its own – different from either of the nouns used separately.

Some hyphenated compound nouns name things:
six-pack
right-of-way
merry-go-round
dry-cleaning
warm-up

Some hyphenated compound nouns name people:
father-in-law
mother-in-law
jack-of-all-trades
great-grandfather
great-grandmother
ten-year-old

Some hyphenated compound nouns name numbers:
forty-two
eighty-six
ninety-nine

Sometimes we use a hyphen between two nouns to make a compound noun. The new compound noun has its own meaning, different from each of the nouns that were joined together.

  • It’s your turn. Find the compound noun in this sentence that should be hyphenated. My sister in law just started a new job. Did you put hyphens in sister-in-law? Good for you.