hyphens: nouns with adjectives and participles

1. Hyphenate noun-plus-adjective compounds (in that order), whether they are used attributively (before the noun) or predicatively:
   • duty-free goods / The goods were duty-free.
   • tax-exempt bonds / The bonds are tax-exempt.
2. Hyphenate noun-plus-participle compounds regardless of the position:
   • snow-capped mountains / The mountains are snow-capped.
   • a time-consuming activity / This activity is time-consuming.

   Exceptions: There are a number of them, including handmade and handwritten.

3. Do not hyphenate compounds formed from a noun and a gerund (present participle used as a noun). Some noun-plus-gerund compounds are written as one word:
   • housekeeping
   • shipbuilding
   • sightseeing
   • cabinetmaking

   Others are written as separate words:

   • decision making
   • power sharing
   • problem solving
   • deficit spending

Exceptions:

• foot-dragging
• gut-wrenching

See hyphens: compound adjectives for such compounds used adjectivally.