# How many spaces between sentences?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-spaces-between-sentences/554703>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [September 22, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-spaces-between-sentences/554703 "2010-09-22T21:36:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 9

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**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\
**Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-spaces-between-sentences/554703/161 "2010-09-29T03:46:24Z")

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Now I understand those people who say they don’t understand the whole over/under toilet paper debate. Under makes me twitch. Two spaces after a sentence, however, doesn’t even deserve a blip on my radar screen.

I am a two-spacer because I BELIEVED those teachers back in the 70’s who told me that two spaces made the sentence easier for the reader’s eye to rest between sentences. Can I learn a different way? Of course. Do I want to? Not really. One or two spaces just doesn’t get me all excited.

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**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\
**Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-spaces-between-sentences/554703/162 "2010-09-29T03:59:20Z")

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In my job, we do a lot of government “deliverables” by way of reporting. The SOP is two spaces after a period. Period. Hey, Uncle Sam not only says, he’s paying. 😃

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**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\
**Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-spaces-between-sentences/554703/163 "2010-09-29T10:17:55Z")

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Interesting that this thread seems almost to provoke opinions as emotional as health-care debates, or the Trillion-dollar folly in the Middle East. 😃

And I am _ **delighted** _ to see double space leading in the poll despite that it’s obsolete … and despite that younger Dopers have never heard of it! 😕

As a double-spacer myself, I’ll cheerfully admit it’s an obsolescent habit. But it won’t make the Top 100 List of Obsolescent Ideas/Habits I’d like to Break, nor even the Top 5000 List for that matter.

> [@Steophan](#):
>
> Two. There should be more space between sentences than words. I would like to thank this thread for finally making me realise why older books are easier to read than new ones.

Great post, **Steophan**! 😃 But is the double space “correct”? :smack: 😃 😃

> [@Randy\_Seltzer](#):
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> That is because board software (correctly) removes all extra spaces between sentences.

Actually, checking my earlier post in this thread, I see that the board software (correctly!) left my sextuple-space intact!!! I’d guess that it’s the Html renderer (IE-7) right here on my laptop that finally removes it for the display.

But that’s not why I quoted **Randy Seltzer**. I quoted him to ask the Mod how much more of this we need to take before thread is moved to the Religion Pit! 😃

> [@Bosstone](#):
>
> I’m not sure what that has to do with HTML displaying only a single space.

Do let’s not get into the idiosyncrasies of html rendering. That would _definitely_ force a move to BBQ Pit.

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