Any difference between "southeast" and "south

Pedro   Thu Dec 13, 2007 12:31 am GMT
Is there any difference between "southeast" and "south-east" because of a hyphen?
Skippy   Thu Dec 13, 2007 4:56 pm GMT
Not that I'm aware of
Inzaghi   Mon Dec 17, 2007 4:44 am GMT
Yes. you use the hyphen to emphasize distance. In this case, south-east must have a greater distance than the former one.

Let us hope it makes sense.
Guest   Mon Dec 17, 2007 4:50 am GMT
Yeah, and if it's really far, you should use an em-dash, like this: "south—east".
Inzaghi   Mon Dec 17, 2007 5:02 am GMT
Exactly. It just a visual emphasis with the distance if you would.
furrykef   Mon Dec 17, 2007 5:21 am GMT
They're just messing with you. There is no difference, but I believe "southeast" is much more common nowadays.
Pedro   Mon Dec 17, 2007 6:40 am GMT
furrykef,
so there is no difference between the "southeast of England" and the "south-east of England" (both forms of which I have seen in a dictionary )?
furrykef   Mon Dec 17, 2007 7:35 am GMT
Nope. Although there is a distinction between "southeast of England" and "the southeast of England" that you need to be aware of.

- Kef