Can you use dash for missing words in English?

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leo12345

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For example:

Every night something spoiled his sleep. Once it was a noise from the neighbors, other time - a thunderstorm.

Should I use dash before 'a thunderstorm' or I must replace it with 'it was'?
(I heard people speak like this, not repeating 'it was' all the time, so when I write this down, should I use dash?)
 

Olympian

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**** I am not a teacher ****

A dash is not needed, and you don't need to use 'it was' again in the same sentence. But instead of 'other time', you can say 'another time'.
 

leo12345

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