- 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, rockforming］, 表示单词于行末分行, 或表示有缺省部分［如short- and long-term］）。
词源
early 17th cent.: via late Latin from Greek huphen 'together', from hupo 'under' + hen 'one'.