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I understand that to be able to type en and em dashes I have to configure the COMPOSE key, or something like that, but I am not sure about that nor on how I get from there to be able to type en and em dashes in addition to the minus sign.

How do I type en and em dashes on Ubuntu GNOME 15.10 with GNOME 3.18?

I have now looked at this answer, so I would now also like to know the code for the en dash and how to assign other keyboard shortcuts to these Unicode characters, as I don't want to have to type something too long in order to get these.

avpaderno
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3 Answers3

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You need to learn the Unicode numbers of these two characters. They are not actually hard to remember, because they look like years. ;)

  • En dash: U+2013
  • Em dash: U+2014

To write a Unicode symbol, perform the following actions:

  • Press Ctrl+Shift+U (the display will show something like u̲)
  • Type the code (e.g. 2014)
  • Press Enter

There you go: – —

For a complete reference to Unicode characters, run gucharmap.

Andrea Lazzarotto
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    I prefer @cipricus's answer below, using the 'compose' key, because those mnemonically chosen 2 or 3 character sequences are easier to remember than arbitrary four digit hex numbers, especially if one uses the same mechanism for other unicode characters as well. – Jonathan Hartley Sep 01 '23 at 19:54
  • Given the solution involves pressing Ctrl-Shift-u, then typing 2013 or 2014, then pressing Enter — what does the first part of the answer (U+2013 etc) mean? – cipricus Sep 06 '23 at 13:33
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    @JonathanHartley I am not sure if you are the one who downvoted the answer, but it was not necessary. My answer provides a method which is working, therefore it is correct. If you prefer someone else's answer of course you should upvote theirs. – Andrea Lazzarotto Sep 07 '23 at 13:40
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    @cipricus that's the Unicode notation for symbols. – Andrea Lazzarotto Sep 07 '23 at 13:41
  • @Andrea Lazzarotto You are right that my downvote is inappropriate. I reviewed the guidelines for "when to downvote" https://askubuntu.com/help/privileges/vote-down and they are exactly as you describe. A downvote should only be for answers that are not useful, not ones that are judged inferior to other answers. I will undo my downvote if I can (ie. if the question is edited.) – Jonathan Hartley Sep 07 '23 at 17:06
  • @JonathanHartley - I put my up-vote too (at least to compensate). – cipricus Sep 08 '23 at 06:50
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    @JonathanHartley no worries. I prefer when people who downvote do leave some kind of reasoning. You left a comment and that is appreciated. – Andrea Lazzarotto Sep 08 '23 at 20:32
  • @cipricus I upvoted yours as well, you made me learn something new after years of using Linux. – Andrea Lazzarotto Sep 08 '23 at 20:33
  • Down voted because Google is taking me here to answer the question of how to use the Compose key, and that's what the question framing implies. This does not answer that question, but a related one. – Rich Remer Jul 16 '25 at 06:41
  • @RichRemer thank you for leaving feedback. That is quite appreciated. The text of the question says "How do I type en and em dashes on Ubuntu GNOME 15.10 with GNOME 3.18?" and I am answering that. The OP is asking how, they are not dictating that the Compose key must be used. – Andrea Lazzarotto Jul 17 '25 at 08:34
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Compose key can be used like this: ­

  • Compose and then --. gives – (en-dash).

  • Compose and then --- gives — (em-dash).

The compose key can be set in the advanced keyboard settings

In LibreOffice Writer one can use :--: and :---:.

In LO there is also the method of using the LO auto-corrector and set -- to – and --- to — for example (but this has the limitation that the automatic corrector acts only after the end of a "word", that is, after Space is pressed, so that, in order to put the em dash close to a word —the way it's often done in English—, you have to delete that space manually etc).

— The compose solution seems the best, as it works everywhere, including in a browser and a terminal.

cipricus
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When I look up "em dash" on the gnome 3 overview a result comes up that puts it on the clipboard. I think you need to have gnome-characters installed for it to work.

Vicente Reyes
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