When is it appropriate to use non-breaking spaces?
.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty{ margin-bottom:0;
}
up vote
15
down vote
favorite
3
I started using non-breaking spaces (represented in the following examples by an underscore) between a number and a unit of measure (10_ft), and within a name (Dr._John_Smith). I like the "look" of using non-breaking spaces to prevent titles from wrapping, but I don't know if it's technically correct or not. Is there a hard rule for this, or it a matter of style? Are their other circumstances when non-breaking spaces are usual?
Just in case it's news to anyone: you can enter a non-breaking space with Ctrl-Shift-Space in Word and Outlook, and possibly other applications.
punctuation writing-style spacing
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
|
show 3 more comments
up vote
15
down vote
favorite
3
I started using non-breaking spaces (represented in the following examples by an underscore) between a number and a unit of measure (10_ft), and within a name (Dr._John_Smith). I like the "look" of using non-breaking spaces to prevent titles from wrapping, but I don't know if it's technically correct or not. Is there a hard rule for this, or it a matter of style? Are their other circumstances when non-breaking spaces are usual?
Just in case it's news to anyone: you can enter a non-breaking space with Ctrl-Shift-Space in Word and Outlook, and possibly other applications.
punctuation writing-style spacing
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
2
I really don't know whether to upvote or downvote this question. It certainly explores the margin between typesetting and language usage!
– FumbleFingers
Jun 3 '11 at 23:50
@FumbleFingers: You have a point...
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:00
@Alenanno: But I see your answer definitely moves that margin further into the world of typesetting! Me, I'm more with @Alex. In terms of actual usage, OP is already getting carried away with that hard space within John_Smith. Personally my rule of thumb is to ignore concerns about what the bit on the end of the first line would look like, and just worry about whether the bit at the start of the next line would be able to stand on its own.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:11
I know there's some info about how to "insert" a non-breaking space in my answer, but they give also examples about real usage (also mentioning unit of measures)... Is it that OT? :D
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:14
3
This is certainly a language question! Especially because it differs from language to language (and maybe even in English, it differs from tradition to tradition!)
– yo'
Feb 18 '13 at 20:47
|
show 3 more comments
up vote
15
down vote
favorite
3
up vote
15
down vote
favorite
3
3
I started using non-breaking spaces (represented in the following examples by an underscore) between a number and a unit of measure (10_ft), and within a name (Dr._John_Smith). I like the "look" of using non-breaking spaces to prevent titles from wrapping, but I don't know if it's technically correct or not. Is there a hard rule for this, or it a matter of style? Are their other circumstances when non-breaking spaces are usual?
Just in case it's news to anyone: you can enter a non-breaking space with Ctrl-Shift-Space in Word and Outlook, and possibly other applications.
punctuation writing-style spacing
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
I started using non-breaking spaces (represented in the following examples by an underscore) between a number and a unit of measure (10_ft), and within a name (Dr._John_Smith). I like the "look" of using non-breaking spaces to prevent titles from wrapping, but I don't know if it's technically correct or not. Is there a hard rule for this, or it a matter of style? Are their other circumstances when non-breaking spaces are usual?
Just in case it's news to anyone: you can enter a non-breaking space with Ctrl-Shift-Space in Word and Outlook, and possibly other applications.
punctuation writing-style spacing
punctuation writing-style spacing
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
edited Aug 14 '16 at 10:51
Targeloid
555
555
asked Jun 3 '11 at 23:21
user9383
2
I really don't know whether to upvote or downvote this question. It certainly explores the margin between typesetting and language usage!
– FumbleFingers
Jun 3 '11 at 23:50
@FumbleFingers: You have a point...
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:00
@Alenanno: But I see your answer definitely moves that margin further into the world of typesetting! Me, I'm more with @Alex. In terms of actual usage, OP is already getting carried away with that hard space within John_Smith. Personally my rule of thumb is to ignore concerns about what the bit on the end of the first line would look like, and just worry about whether the bit at the start of the next line would be able to stand on its own.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:11
I know there's some info about how to "insert" a non-breaking space in my answer, but they give also examples about real usage (also mentioning unit of measures)... Is it that OT? :D
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:14
3
This is certainly a language question! Especially because it differs from language to language (and maybe even in English, it differs from tradition to tradition!)
– yo'
Feb 18 '13 at 20:47
|
show 3 more comments
2
I really don't know whether to upvote or downvote this question. It certainly explores the margin between typesetting and language usage!
– FumbleFingers
Jun 3 '11 at 23:50
@FumbleFingers: You have a point...
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:00
@Alenanno: But I see your answer definitely moves that margin further into the world of typesetting! Me, I'm more with @Alex. In terms of actual usage, OP is already getting carried away with that hard space within John_Smith. Personally my rule of thumb is to ignore concerns about what the bit on the end of the first line would look like, and just worry about whether the bit at the start of the next line would be able to stand on its own.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:11
I know there's some info about how to "insert" a non-breaking space in my answer, but they give also examples about real usage (also mentioning unit of measures)... Is it that OT? :D
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:14
3
This is certainly a language question! Especially because it differs from language to language (and maybe even in English, it differs from tradition to tradition!)
– yo'
Feb 18 '13 at 20:47
2
2
I really don't know whether to upvote or downvote this question. It certainly explores the margin between typesetting and language usage!
– FumbleFingers
Jun 3 '11 at 23:50
I really don't know whether to upvote or downvote this question. It certainly explores the margin between typesetting and language usage!
– FumbleFingers
Jun 3 '11 at 23:50
@FumbleFingers: You have a point...
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:00
@FumbleFingers: You have a point...
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:00
@Alenanno: But I see your answer definitely moves that margin further into the world of typesetting! Me, I'm more with @Alex. In terms of actual usage, OP is already getting carried away with that hard space within John_Smith. Personally my rule of thumb is to ignore concerns about what the bit on the end of the first line would look like, and just worry about whether the bit at the start of the next line would be able to stand on its own.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:11
@Alenanno: But I see your answer definitely moves that margin further into the world of typesetting! Me, I'm more with @Alex. In terms of actual usage, OP is already getting carried away with that hard space within John_Smith. Personally my rule of thumb is to ignore concerns about what the bit on the end of the first line would look like, and just worry about whether the bit at the start of the next line would be able to stand on its own.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:11
I know there's some info about how to "insert" a non-breaking space in my answer, but they give also examples about real usage (also mentioning unit of measures)... Is it that OT? :D
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:14
I know there's some info about how to "insert" a non-breaking space in my answer, but they give also examples about real usage (also mentioning unit of measures)... Is it that OT? :D
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:14
3
3
This is certainly a language question! Especially because it differs from language to language (and maybe even in English, it differs from tradition to tradition!)
– yo'
Feb 18 '13 at 20:47
This is certainly a language question! Especially because it differs from language to language (and maybe even in English, it differs from tradition to tradition!)
– yo'
Feb 18 '13 at 20:47
|
show 3 more comments
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
up vote
10
down vote
accepted
The usage of a non-breaking space is explained here and here:
- It is advisable to use a non-breaking space (also known as a hard space) to prevent the end-of-line displacement of elements that would be awkward at the beginning of a new line:
- in expressions in which figures and abbreviations (or symbols) are separated by a space (e.g.
17 kg,AD 565,2:50 pm);
- between the date number and month name (e.g.
3 JuneorJune 3);
- in other places where breaking across lines might be disruptive to the reader, especially in infoboxes, such as
£11 billion,June 2011,5° 24′ 21.12″ N,Boeing 747, after the number in a numbered address (e.g.123 Fake Street) and before Roman numerals at the end of phrases (e.g.World War IIandPope Benedict XVI).
- A hard space can be produced with the HTML code
instead of the space bar;19 kgyields a non-breaking19 kg.
- A literal hard space, such as one of the Unicode non-breaking space characters, should not be used since some web browsers will not load them properly when editing.
- Unlike normal spaces, multiple hard spaces are not compressed by browsers into a single space.
- A non-breaking space should be used before a spaced en dash.
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
Yes, as the hard-breaking space has no visual representation I used an underscore instead. Wikipedia's page is more of a style guide than an official rulebook, but it's as good as any!
– user9383
Jun 7 '11 at 12:45
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
One place where it's important is between a person's initials (e.g., J. Q. Adams), so that the J. and Q. don't end up separated. (A nonbreaking space isn't needed between the initials and the last name, though).
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
5
I would have said standard practice would be not to have a space between J. and Q. in your example. But having just done a bit of googling for T.S. Elliot I find that maybe half of all references do it your way. It still seems wrong to me, but obviously it's a matter of style and personal choice.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:19
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
10
down vote
accepted
The usage of a non-breaking space is explained here and here:
- It is advisable to use a non-breaking space (also known as a hard space) to prevent the end-of-line displacement of elements that would be awkward at the beginning of a new line:
- in expressions in which figures and abbreviations (or symbols) are separated by a space (e.g.
17 kg,AD 565,2:50 pm);
- between the date number and month name (e.g.
3 JuneorJune 3);
- in other places where breaking across lines might be disruptive to the reader, especially in infoboxes, such as
£11 billion,June 2011,5° 24′ 21.12″ N,Boeing 747, after the number in a numbered address (e.g.123 Fake Street) and before Roman numerals at the end of phrases (e.g.World War IIandPope Benedict XVI).
- A hard space can be produced with the HTML code
instead of the space bar;19 kgyields a non-breaking19 kg.
- A literal hard space, such as one of the Unicode non-breaking space characters, should not be used since some web browsers will not load them properly when editing.
- Unlike normal spaces, multiple hard spaces are not compressed by browsers into a single space.
- A non-breaking space should be used before a spaced en dash.
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
Yes, as the hard-breaking space has no visual representation I used an underscore instead. Wikipedia's page is more of a style guide than an official rulebook, but it's as good as any!
– user9383
Jun 7 '11 at 12:45
add a comment |
up vote
10
down vote
accepted
The usage of a non-breaking space is explained here and here:
- It is advisable to use a non-breaking space (also known as a hard space) to prevent the end-of-line displacement of elements that would be awkward at the beginning of a new line:
- in expressions in which figures and abbreviations (or symbols) are separated by a space (e.g.
17 kg,AD 565,2:50 pm);
- between the date number and month name (e.g.
3 JuneorJune 3);
- in other places where breaking across lines might be disruptive to the reader, especially in infoboxes, such as
£11 billion,June 2011,5° 24′ 21.12″ N,Boeing 747, after the number in a numbered address (e.g.123 Fake Street) and before Roman numerals at the end of phrases (e.g.World War IIandPope Benedict XVI).
- A hard space can be produced with the HTML code
instead of the space bar;19 kgyields a non-breaking19 kg.
- A literal hard space, such as one of the Unicode non-breaking space characters, should not be used since some web browsers will not load them properly when editing.
- Unlike normal spaces, multiple hard spaces are not compressed by browsers into a single space.
- A non-breaking space should be used before a spaced en dash.
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
Yes, as the hard-breaking space has no visual representation I used an underscore instead. Wikipedia's page is more of a style guide than an official rulebook, but it's as good as any!
– user9383
Jun 7 '11 at 12:45
add a comment |
up vote
10
down vote
accepted
up vote
10
down vote
accepted
The usage of a non-breaking space is explained here and here:
- It is advisable to use a non-breaking space (also known as a hard space) to prevent the end-of-line displacement of elements that would be awkward at the beginning of a new line:
- in expressions in which figures and abbreviations (or symbols) are separated by a space (e.g.
17 kg,AD 565,2:50 pm);
- between the date number and month name (e.g.
3 JuneorJune 3);
- in other places where breaking across lines might be disruptive to the reader, especially in infoboxes, such as
£11 billion,June 2011,5° 24′ 21.12″ N,Boeing 747, after the number in a numbered address (e.g.123 Fake Street) and before Roman numerals at the end of phrases (e.g.World War IIandPope Benedict XVI).
- A hard space can be produced with the HTML code
instead of the space bar;19 kgyields a non-breaking19 kg.
- A literal hard space, such as one of the Unicode non-breaking space characters, should not be used since some web browsers will not load them properly when editing.
- Unlike normal spaces, multiple hard spaces are not compressed by browsers into a single space.
- A non-breaking space should be used before a spaced en dash.
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
The usage of a non-breaking space is explained here and here:
- It is advisable to use a non-breaking space (also known as a hard space) to prevent the end-of-line displacement of elements that would be awkward at the beginning of a new line:
- in expressions in which figures and abbreviations (or symbols) are separated by a space (e.g.
17 kg,AD 565,2:50 pm);
- between the date number and month name (e.g.
3 JuneorJune 3);
- in other places where breaking across lines might be disruptive to the reader, especially in infoboxes, such as
£11 billion,June 2011,5° 24′ 21.12″ N,Boeing 747, after the number in a numbered address (e.g.123 Fake Street) and before Roman numerals at the end of phrases (e.g.World War IIandPope Benedict XVI).
- A hard space can be produced with the HTML code
instead of the space bar;19 kgyields a non-breaking19 kg.
- A literal hard space, such as one of the Unicode non-breaking space characters, should not be used since some web browsers will not load them properly when editing.
- Unlike normal spaces, multiple hard spaces are not compressed by browsers into a single space.
- A non-breaking space should be used before a spaced en dash.
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
edited Dec 1 at 21:41
Chappo
2,44441224
2,44441224
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:55
Alenanno
16.6k23773
16.6k23773
Yes, as the hard-breaking space has no visual representation I used an underscore instead. Wikipedia's page is more of a style guide than an official rulebook, but it's as good as any!
– user9383
Jun 7 '11 at 12:45
add a comment |
Yes, as the hard-breaking space has no visual representation I used an underscore instead. Wikipedia's page is more of a style guide than an official rulebook, but it's as good as any!
– user9383
Jun 7 '11 at 12:45
Yes, as the hard-breaking space has no visual representation I used an underscore instead. Wikipedia's page is more of a style guide than an official rulebook, but it's as good as any!
– user9383
Jun 7 '11 at 12:45
Yes, as the hard-breaking space has no visual representation I used an underscore instead. Wikipedia's page is more of a style guide than an official rulebook, but it's as good as any!
– user9383
Jun 7 '11 at 12:45
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
One place where it's important is between a person's initials (e.g., J. Q. Adams), so that the J. and Q. don't end up separated. (A nonbreaking space isn't needed between the initials and the last name, though).
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
5
I would have said standard practice would be not to have a space between J. and Q. in your example. But having just done a bit of googling for T.S. Elliot I find that maybe half of all references do it your way. It still seems wrong to me, but obviously it's a matter of style and personal choice.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:19
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
One place where it's important is between a person's initials (e.g., J. Q. Adams), so that the J. and Q. don't end up separated. (A nonbreaking space isn't needed between the initials and the last name, though).
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
5
I would have said standard practice would be not to have a space between J. and Q. in your example. But having just done a bit of googling for T.S. Elliot I find that maybe half of all references do it your way. It still seems wrong to me, but obviously it's a matter of style and personal choice.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:19
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
up vote
3
down vote
One place where it's important is between a person's initials (e.g., J. Q. Adams), so that the J. and Q. don't end up separated. (A nonbreaking space isn't needed between the initials and the last name, though).
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
One place where it's important is between a person's initials (e.g., J. Q. Adams), so that the J. and Q. don't end up separated. (A nonbreaking space isn't needed between the initials and the last name, though).
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
answered Jun 3 '11 at 23:52
Alex
4,58911822
4,58911822
5
I would have said standard practice would be not to have a space between J. and Q. in your example. But having just done a bit of googling for T.S. Elliot I find that maybe half of all references do it your way. It still seems wrong to me, but obviously it's a matter of style and personal choice.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:19
add a comment |
5
I would have said standard practice would be not to have a space between J. and Q. in your example. But having just done a bit of googling for T.S. Elliot I find that maybe half of all references do it your way. It still seems wrong to me, but obviously it's a matter of style and personal choice.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:19
5
5
I would have said standard practice would be not to have a space between J. and Q. in your example. But having just done a bit of googling for T.S. Elliot I find that maybe half of all references do it your way. It still seems wrong to me, but obviously it's a matter of style and personal choice.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:19
I would have said standard practice would be not to have a space between J. and Q. in your example. But having just done a bit of googling for T.S. Elliot I find that maybe half of all references do it your way. It still seems wrong to me, but obviously it's a matter of style and personal choice.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:19
add a comment |
draft saved
draft discarded
Thanks for contributing an answer to English Language & Usage Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Some of your past answers have not been well-received, and you're in danger of being blocked from answering.
Please pay close attention to the following guidance:
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
draft saved
draft discarded
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f28467%2fwhen-is-it-appropriate-to-use-non-breaking-spaces%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
2
I really don't know whether to upvote or downvote this question. It certainly explores the margin between typesetting and language usage!
– FumbleFingers
Jun 3 '11 at 23:50
@FumbleFingers: You have a point...
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:00
@Alenanno: But I see your answer definitely moves that margin further into the world of typesetting! Me, I'm more with @Alex. In terms of actual usage, OP is already getting carried away with that hard space within John_Smith. Personally my rule of thumb is to ignore concerns about what the bit on the end of the first line would look like, and just worry about whether the bit at the start of the next line would be able to stand on its own.
– FumbleFingers
Jun 4 '11 at 0:11
I know there's some info about how to "insert" a non-breaking space in my answer, but they give also examples about real usage (also mentioning unit of measures)... Is it that OT? :D
– Alenanno
Jun 4 '11 at 0:14
3
This is certainly a language question! Especially because it differs from language to language (and maybe even in English, it differs from tradition to tradition!)
– yo'
Feb 18 '13 at 20:47