time-consuming vs time consuming?

Should the phrase time consuming hyphenated or not?

In the context I'm using it in, the hyphen seems right.

"Painting the walls with chalkboard paint and providing chalk allows customers to make their mark without creating a time-consuming mess."

Solution 1:

When used as an adjective, the hyphen is appropriate according to dictionaries including ODO and Merriam Webster. So your example would be the correct usage.

However, there are a few cases where the hyphen may not be appropriate. The phrase "time-consuming" is made up of a noun ("time") and adjective ("consuming"). The Chicago Manual of Style says that these types of compounds are usually hyphenated when they appear before a noun, but not when they come after the noun. For example:

• This is a very time-consuming task.
• This task is very time consuming.

In addition to this, when time consuming is not being used as a compound adjective it should not be hyphenated, for example:

• She spent a long time consuming the meal.