If you’ve used ChatGPT, you’ve seen it constantly. The long line (—) instead of normal, mortal-written punctuation. The em dash. We all hate it, but it just wouldn’t die.
I’ve tried every trick, prompt, and setting to get rid of the em dash. None worked reliably. Until now.
Oh yeah, and before we start… the image at the top is not real. There is no toggle for this (yet… maybe someday).
Why the Em Dash in ChatGPT Has to Go
The em dash might be grammatically correct, but it looks robotic and screams AI-generated. I never used it until ChatGPT did. Now every other sentence looks like it was written by a 19th-century novelist.
If you’re human and you post anything online, those dashes instantly tell readers your work probably came from ChatGPT. That’s reason enough to kill it, am I right?
The Old (Failed) Ways to Remove It from AI
If you’ve tried to stop the em dash before, you probably:
- Added “remove all em dashes” as a follow-up prompt after receiving an output.
- Told ChatGPT “never use em dashes” in your Custom Instructions or Memories.
- Cleaned them up manually while sighing and grunting.
Those fixes don’t last or don’t work. They suck. Time to move on.
The Fix: Add This Prompt to Kill the Em Dash
Copy and paste this line into your Custom Instructions, or at the end of any of your writing prompts:
“Do not use em dashes. If an em dash would normally appear, use a comma for continuing thoughts or a period if it should be a separate sentence.”
That’s it. One line that actually works.
How to Remove It From All Chats
- Open ChatGPT.
- Click on your name on the bottom left.
- Click Personalization.
- Click Enable Personalization.
- Go to Custom Instructions.
- Paste that line at the top (or towards the top) of your Custom Instructions field.
- Click Save.
Every chat will now follow that rule automatically.
Does It Remove Them 100% of the Time?
Almost. AI isn’t perfect, but after dozens of tests, I haven’t seen one em dash slip through the cracks. This fix sticks (in my testing).
Why You Should Care About This
“It’s just an em dash! Maybe you should get a godamn life instead of caring about something so trivial.”
Even if it’s proper grammar, the em dash is an AI giveaway. Removing it makes your writing look more natural.
Also, maybe it’s just me, but when it’s not a part of the AI responses, it just feels more human and natural to me, instead of like I’m talking to a robot.
No one outside of lonely middle school Grammar teachers or actual book authors are using em dashes like punctuation trophies.
Wrapping It Up
Add that one line to your custom instructions and end the em dash problem for good.
2025 is officially the year we put it down with a lethal prompt injection.
Did this work for you? Drop a comment below.
Until next time, remember to run the prompts and prompt the planet.
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