HY'PHEN, noun [Gr. under one, or to one.] A mark or short line made between two words to show that they form a compound word, or are to be connected; as in pre-occupied; five-leafed; ink-stand. In writing and printing, the hyphen is used to connect the syllables of a divided word, and is placed after the syllable that closes a line, denoting the connection of that syllable or part of a word with the first syllable of the next line.
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Webster's Dictionary 1828
American Dictionary of the English Language, Noah Webster, 1828.