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Rafaela
Does 'ish' at the end of a word need a hypen when it means a little bit / quite ? (slang)
he was making a scary-ish face /scaryish face (a face quite scary but not totally)
she was happy-ish / happyish (a little bit happy)
I will be there nine-ish /nineish (I'll be there at about 9 o'clock)
Sep 19, 2016 2:22 PM
Answers · 5
I would say it is a matter of preference. By definition, there is no correct answer, because we're looking at slang, not "proper" English.
Personally, I use -ish rather than ish, but everyone will have their own opinion.
September 19, 2016
The rule is very simple: check a dictionary. If it is a recognized standard word, it will be in the dictionary and you spell it without a hyphen. Some examples: reddish, yellowish, greenish, bluish, darkish, nightmarish, kittenish, brackish, coltish, slowish, wolfish, sheepish, Moorish, Turkish, impish.
If you are manufacturing it yourself by adding the suffolk "-ish" to a word, and it's not in the dictionary, then use a hyphen.
If it's a word we all need, then maybe you will be lucky and people will start to use it and someday it will be added to the dictionary.
September 19, 2016
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Rafaela
Language Skills
Chinese (Mandarin), English, Portuguese
Learning Language
Chinese (Mandarin), English
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