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To: RebelTex

English and grammer were my worst subjects.
natural-born vs. natural born
How does the hyphen impact the meaning of the word group?
The constitution uses natural born Citizen


215 posted on 10/03/2009 5:30:02 PM PDT by Steven Tyler
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To: Steven Tyler

You asked “How does the hyphen impact the meaning of the word group?”

You are correct that the Constitution does not use the hyphen between natural and born.

However, I believe that the use of a hyphen connects the two words in a way which indicates that a specific condition must exist, separate and apart from the meaning of each individual word, in order to properly use the term natural-born. Thus, using a hyphen would be more clearly indicative and proper to refer to that specific condition.

(This is my personal belief and preference which may or may not be shared by others.)

Without the hyphen, the phrase ‘natural born’ could be interpreted as the manner in which a child is born, such as through the birth canal instead of by c-section.


219 posted on 10/03/2009 7:39:41 PM PDT by RebelTex
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