Using a slash (/) between multi-word phrases [duplicate]

As I often say in response to these questions, it's not obvious what form of "OK"-ness you're looking for in asking this. It's really a stylistic decision. If you're writing to a particular style guide, do what the style guide says in this respect. If what you are writing will be edited by somebody, let them decide what to do. Otherwise (or if your editor/style guide has no opinion on the matter), decide if you like the slash or not and use it if you do...

For writing regular texts, you should try to avoid slashes. Use them if you must, but they do put a dent in the flow of the sentence so it's easier to read a sentence without it.

Some uses are well known (at least for a specific target audience), for example i/o for input/output, so using that can actually make the text easier to read.

Others, like w/o as an abbreviation for without is just for saving space or saving keypresses, common in space limited digital communication like SMS messages. You should avoid those, unless you are after that exact impression.

Do you want casual, even sloppy, writing, or precise, more elegant writing? I prefer precise, if I can't always achieve elegance.

• This is sloppy: "He has a large binder/notebook." Well, decide if you want to call it a binder or a notebook. It could even be a binder notebook, in which binder modifies notebook and tells us what kind of notebook it is.
• "They rode the streetcar/tram." Just plain laziness: is it a streetcar or a tram? You decide.
• As for and/or, it is used in legal briefs, but not in good writing. "Do you want apples or oranges or both?" Not "apples and/or oranges."
• If you want to say "or" use "or" and not a slash. "He has a large binder or notebook."

Good writing is worth your time. If you are trying to express yourself in words, don't ever say you "can't be bothered."