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I ran across this text:

From October 17-20, 2016, we will be attending the electric appliances convention, in Spain.

Meaning that we will be attending the convention between October 17th and October 20th (inclusive).

My questions are:

  1. Is it correct to write "From October 17-20" to express the aforementioned meaning?

  2. Would it be incorrect to write "On October 17-20"? (A native speaker told me that it would be, because "on" can only be used when referring to a single day and is not suitable for a range).

  3. Would it be correct to write "During October 17-20", and if so, is it considered preferable to "from"?

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  • What you ran across is wrong. From October 17th to the 20th, we will be attending the conference etc.. Also, unless it is not obvious, one would not put in the year. Your point 2. is correct. On is for a single day, and from needs to. During, nyet here.
    – Lambie
    Commented Sep 28, 2016 at 12:43

1 Answer 1

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You could also write:

From October 17th through the 20th, we will...

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  • Welcome to EL&U! We strive to create objective and well-researched answers. Can you specify why you think this response is better than any other? Take the Tour and see How to Answer for more.
    – BladorthinTheGrey
    Commented Sep 28, 2016 at 16:01
  • I also think this sounds better, but I still wonder if "From October 17-20, 2016" is outright incorrect, and if possible, see a reference to some formal guideline that specifies that...
    – obe
    Commented Sep 28, 2016 at 16:17
  • @obe The problem with "From October 17-20" is that it makes the entire phrase "October 17-20" the object of the preposition "from". The intended meaning is that the object of "from" is just "October 17". "October 20" should be the object of "to" or "through" or "until". To make "From October 17-20" match the intended meaning, one must imagine that the dash between 17 and 20 is a preposition.
    – Andreas Blass
    Commented Sep 28, 2016 at 22:47
  • Would it not be "through to the 20th"? As in, "who made it through to the next round"?
    – Flater
    Commented Jul 26, 2017 at 9:25

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