Why does the minus sign look like a hyphen (Dash)???

The minus sign often looks like a dash because on most keyboards, the readily available symbol that resembles a minus sign is actually a hyphen, which is technically a different character but is frequently used as a substitute for a minus sign in casual writing or when the proper minus symbol isn't readily accessible; this leads to confusion between the two as they appear visually similar.

The reason the minus sign (-) looks like a dash is largely a matter of convention and historical development. The term "dash" can be somewhat confusing, as it refers to two different characters: the dash (–) and the hyphen (-).

In the early days of typesetting, the hyphen and the minus sign were often created by a single key or a similar character. This led to the minus sign being represented as a shorter, more horizontal version of the dash. Over time, the two characters were standardized, but the name "dash" stuck to the longer character.