Commonly mistaken with hyphens, dashes have their independent functions. Therefore, they have to be used according to their rules. Like any other punctuation marks, each punctuation has its own unique rule that it should not be mistaken to be interchanged with others – unless if they have the same rules. Hence, the best thing to do is to know to when you can use a particular punctuation.
Dashes add emphasis, an interruption or a change of thought in sentences. They look like hyphens, but dashes are longer and spaces are placed in the sentences. Here are some rules some overlook in using dashes.