diff --git a/client/cmd/query.go b/client/cmd/query.go
index 4da2629..108fa12 100644
--- a/client/cmd/query.go
+++ b/client/cmd/query.go
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ var tqueryCmd = &cobra.Command{
 		if os.Getenv("HISHTORY_SHELL_NAME") != "" {
 			shellName = os.Getenv("HISHTORY_SHELL_NAME")
 		}
-		lib.CheckFatalError(tui.TuiQuery(ctx, shellName, strings.Join(args, " ")))
+		lib.CheckFatalError(tui.TuiQuery(ctx, shellName, args))
 	},
 }
 
diff --git a/client/lib/lib.go b/client/lib/lib.go
index c59dd57..defc664 100644
--- a/client/lib/lib.go
+++ b/client/lib/lib.go
@@ -965,7 +965,9 @@ func splitEscaped(query string, separator rune, maxSplit int) []string {
 	isInSingleQuotedString := false
 	for i := 0; i < len(runeQuery); i++ {
 		if (maxSplit < 0 || splits < maxSplit) && runeQuery[i] == separator && !isInSingleQuotedString && !isInDoubleQuotedString {
-			tokens = append(tokens, string(token))
+			if string(token) != "" {
+				tokens = append(tokens, string(token))
+			}
 			token = token[:0]
 			splits++
 		} else if runeQuery[i] == '\\' && i+1 < len(runeQuery) {
@@ -982,13 +984,20 @@ func splitEscaped(query string, separator rune, maxSplit int) []string {
 		} else if runeQuery[i] == '\'' && !isInDoubleQuotedString && !heuristicIgnoreUnclosedQuote(isInSingleQuotedString, '\'', runeQuery, i) {
 			isInSingleQuotedString = !isInSingleQuotedString
 		} else {
-			if (isInSingleQuotedString || isInDoubleQuotedString) && separator == ' ' && runeQuery[i] == ':' {
-				token = append(token, '\\')
+			if (isInSingleQuotedString || isInDoubleQuotedString) && separator == ' ' {
+				if runeQuery[i] == ':' {
+					token = append(token, '\\')
+				}
+				if runeQuery[i] == '-' && len(token) == 0 {
+					token = append(token, '\\')
+				}
 			}
 			token = append(token, runeQuery[i])
 		}
 	}
-	tokens = append(tokens, string(token))
+	if string(token) != "" {
+		tokens = append(tokens, string(token))
+	}
 	return tokens
 }
 
diff --git a/client/lib/lib_test.go b/client/lib/lib_test.go
index 2d3ad93..22853ec 100644
--- a/client/lib/lib_test.go
+++ b/client/lib/lib_test.go
@@ -306,8 +306,8 @@ func TestSplitEscaped(t *testing.T) {
 		{"'foo\"bar", ' ', -1, []string{"'foo\"bar"}},
 		{"\"foo'\\\"bar\"", ' ', -1, []string{"foo'\"bar"}},
 		{"'foo\"\\'bar'", ' ', -1, []string{"foo\"'bar"}},
-		{"''", ' ', -1, []string{""}},
-		{"\"\"", ' ', -1, []string{""}},
+		{"''", ' ', -1, nil},
+		{"\"\"", ' ', -1, nil},
 		{"\\\"", ' ', -1, []string{"\""}},
 		{"\\'", ' ', -1, []string{"'"}},
 		// Tests the behavior of quotes with
@@ -324,6 +324,11 @@ func TestSplitEscaped(t *testing.T) {
 		{"foo:bar", ' ', -1, []string{"foo:bar"}},
 		{"'foo:bar'", ' ', -1, []string{"foo\\:bar"}},
 		{"\"foo:bar\"", ' ', -1, []string{"foo\\:bar"}},
+		// Tests for quoting dashes
+		{"'-foo'", ' ', -1, []string{"\\-foo"}},
+		{"'--foo'", ' ', -1, []string{"\\--foo"}},
+		{"bar '--foo'", ' ', -1, []string{"bar", "\\--foo"}},
+		{"bar 'foo-baz'", ' ', -1, []string{"bar", "foo-baz"}},
 	}
 	for _, tc := range testcases {
 		actual := splitEscaped(tc.input, tc.char, tc.limit)
diff --git a/client/tui/tui.go b/client/tui/tui.go
index 9e8440d..d883a40 100644
--- a/client/tui/tui.go
+++ b/client/tui/tui.go
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ package tui
 import (
 	"context"
 	_ "embed" // for embedding config.sh
+	"encoding/json"
 	"fmt"
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
@@ -865,21 +866,55 @@ func configureColorProfile(ctx context.Context) {
 	}
 }
 
-func TuiQuery(ctx context.Context, shellName, initialQuery string) error {
+func buildInitialQueryWithSearchEscaping(initialQueryArray []string) (string, error) {
+	var initialQuery string
+
+	for i, queryChunk := range initialQueryArray {
+		if i != 0 {
+			initialQuery += " "
+		}
+		if strings.HasPrefix(queryChunk, "-") {
+			quoted, err := json.Marshal(queryChunk)
+			if err != nil {
+				return "", fmt.Errorf("failed to marshal query chunk for escaping: %w", err)
+			}
+			initialQuery += string(quoted)
+		} else {
+			initialQuery += queryChunk
+		}
+	}
+
+	return initialQuery, nil
+}
+
+func splitQueryArray(initialQueryArray []string) []string {
+	var splitQueryArray []string
+	for _, queryChunk := range initialQueryArray {
+		splitQueryArray = append(splitQueryArray, strings.Split(queryChunk, " ")...)
+	}
+	return splitQueryArray
+}
+
+func TuiQuery(ctx context.Context, shellName string, initialQueryArray []string) error {
+	initialQueryArray = splitQueryArray(initialQueryArray)
+	initialQueryWithEscaping, err := buildInitialQueryWithSearchEscaping(initialQueryArray)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
 	loadedKeyBindings = hctx.GetConf(ctx).KeyBindings.ToKeyMap()
 	configureColorProfile(ctx)
-	p := tea.NewProgram(initialModel(ctx, shellName, initialQuery), tea.WithOutput(os.Stderr))
+	p := tea.NewProgram(initialModel(ctx, shellName, initialQueryWithEscaping), tea.WithOutput(os.Stderr))
 	// Async: Get the initial set of rows
 	go func() {
 		LAST_DISPATCHED_QUERY_ID++
 		queryId := LAST_DISPATCHED_QUERY_ID
 		LAST_DISPATCHED_QUERY_TIMESTAMP = time.Now()
 		conf := hctx.GetConf(ctx)
-		rows, entries, err := getRows(ctx, conf.DisplayedColumns, shellName, conf.DefaultFilter, initialQuery, PADDED_NUM_ENTRIES)
-		if err == nil || initialQuery == "" {
+		rows, entries, err := getRows(ctx, conf.DisplayedColumns, shellName, conf.DefaultFilter, initialQueryWithEscaping, PADDED_NUM_ENTRIES)
+		if err == nil || initialQueryWithEscaping == "" {
 			p.Send(asyncQueryFinishedMsg{queryId: queryId, rows: rows, entries: entries, searchErr: err, forceUpdateTable: true, maintainCursor: false, overriddenSearchQuery: nil})
 		} else {
-			// initialQuery is likely invalid in some way, let's just drop it
+			// The initial query is likely invalid in some way, let's just drop it
 			emptyQuery := ""
 			rows, entries, err := getRows(ctx, hctx.GetConf(ctx).DisplayedColumns, shellName, conf.DefaultFilter, emptyQuery, PADDED_NUM_ENTRIES)
 			p.Send(asyncQueryFinishedMsg{queryId: queryId, rows: rows, entries: entries, searchErr: err, forceUpdateTable: true, maintainCursor: false, overriddenSearchQuery: &emptyQuery})
@@ -913,13 +948,13 @@ func TuiQuery(ctx context.Context, shellName, initialQuery string) error {
 		p.Send(bannerMsg{banner: string(banner)})
 	}()
 	// Blocking: Start the TUI
-	_, err := p.Run()
+	_, err = p.Run()
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 	if SELECTED_COMMAND == "" && os.Getenv("HISHTORY_TERM_INTEGRATION") != "" {
-		// Print out the initialQuery instead so that we don't clear the terminal
-		SELECTED_COMMAND = initialQuery
+		// Print out the initialQuery instead so that we don't clear the terminal (note that we don't use the escaped one here)
+		SELECTED_COMMAND = strings.Join(initialQueryArray, " ")
 	}
 	fmt.Printf("%s\n", SELECTED_COMMAND)
 	return nil