Quotation Marks

Quotation Marks

We use quotation marks with direct quotes, with titles of certain works, to imply alternate meanings, and to write words as words.

Rule 1. Use double quotation marks to set off a direct (word-for-word) quotation.

• "I hope you will be here," he said.

• Incorrect: He said that he "hoped I would be there." (The quotation marks are incorrect because hoped I would be there does not state the speaker's exact words.)

Rule 2a. Always capitalize the first word in a complete quotation, even midsentence.

• Lamarr said, "The case is far from over, and we will win."

Rule 2b. Do not capitalize quoted material that continues a sentence.

• Lamarr said that the case was "far from over" and that "we will win."

Rule 3a. Use commas to introduce or interrupt direct quotations.

• He said, "I don't care."

• "Why," I asked, "don't you care?"

Rule 3b. If the quotation comes before he said, she wrote, they reported, Dana insisted, or a similar attribution, end the quoted material with a comma, even if it is only one word.

• "I don't care," he said.

• "Stop," he said.

Rule 3c. If a quotation functions as a subject or object in a sentence, it might not need a comma.

• Is "I don't care" all you can say to me?

• Saying "Stop the car" was a mistake.

Rule 4. Periods and commas ALWAYS go inside quotation marks.

• The sign said, "Walk." Then it said, "Don't Walk," then, "Walk," all within thirty seconds. He yelled, "Hurry up."

Rule 5. The placement of question marks with quotation marks follows logic. If a question is within the quoted material, a question mark should be placed inside the quotation marks.

• Rule 5a. The placement of question marks with quotation marks follows logic. If a question is within the quoted material, a question mark should be placed inside the quotation marks.

Rule 6. Use single quotation marks for quotations within quotations.

• Dan said: "In a town outside Brisbane, I saw 'Tourists go home' written on a wall. But then someone told me, 'Pay it no mind, lad.' "

Rule 7a. Quotation marks are often used with technical terms, terms used in an unusual way, or other expressions that vary from standard usage.

Examples:

• It's an oil-extraction method known as "fracking."

• He did some "experimenting" in his college days.