Forums » ESL, Rules of English Grammar, Help and Games » ESL General English Grammar Questions » Punctuation within quotes?

Punctuation within quotes?
1 2 3
   Share on Facebook  
Anonymous  #391002  Wed, 11 Jul 07 10:37 PM
For american English, a period ending a sentence should always go inside the quotation marks. A question mark ending a sentence goes inside the quotation marks if you are quoting a question, outside if you are asking a question, inside if both. You should never have punctuation both inside and outside the quotation marks.

She said, "Go to the store."
Did she say "Go to the store"?
She said, "Should I go to the store?"
Did she say "Should I go to the store?"
  
, , , ,
Anonymous  #434110  Wed, 24 Oct 07 08:33 AM
I find these rules at http://www.grammarbook.com/punctuation/quotes.asp very helpful.

Rule 1 Periods and commas always go inside quotation marks, even inside single quotes.
Examples The sign changed from "Walk," to "Don't Walk," to "Walk" again within 30 seconds.
She said, "Hurry up."
She said, "He said, 'Hurry up.'"

Rule 2 The placement of question marks with quotes follows logic. If a question is in quotation marks, the question mark should be placed inside the quotation marks.
Examples She asked, "Will you still be my friend?"
  Do you agree with the saying, "All's fair in love and war"?
Here the question is outside the quote.
NOTE Only one ending punctuation mark is used with quotation marks. Also, the stronger punctuation mark wins. Therefore, no period after war is used.

Rule 3 When you have a question outside quoted material AND inside quoted material, use only one question mark and place it inside the
quotation mark.
Example Did she say, "May I go?"

Rule 4 Use single quotation marks for quotes within quotes. Note that the period goes inside all quote marks.
Example He said, "Danea said, 'Do not treat me that way.'"

Rule 5 Use quotation marks to set off a direct quotation only.
Examples "When will you be here?" he asked.
He asked when you will be there.

Rule 6 Do not use quotation marks with quoted material that is more than three lines in length. Introduce the quotation with a colon and leave a blank line above and below the quoted material. Single space the quoted material. Some style manuals say to indent one-half inch on both the left and right margins; others say to indent only on the left margin. Quotation marks are not used.

Rule 7 When you are quoting something that has a spelling or grammar mistake or presents material in a confusing way, insert the term sic in italics and enclose it in brackets. Sic means, "This is the way the original
material was."
Example She wrote, "I would rather die then [sic] be seen wearing the same outfit as my sister has on."
Should be than, not then.
  
, , , , , , ,
Mister Micawber  #434113  Wed, 24 Oct 07 08:54 AM

... Except that they are not universally accepted.  For example, in BrE, rule 1 does not hold true.
  
Top 10 Contributor
Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004
Yokohama
Veteran Member (21,271)
SystemAdministratorTeachers
'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.'
Anonymous  #463008  Fri, 11 Jan 08 12:56 PM
The preceeding shows ignorance and irritating arrogance on the part of the poster.

  In proper English grammar, the ending punctuation is placed within the quotation marks only if it forms part of the actual quotation. The grammatically incorrect American practice of always including the closing punctuation is simply a pragmatic by-product of early typesetting requirements. A small symbol, such as a full stop, was easily damaged when printing, if placed at the end of a line of type.

NB.  Even in the USA, technical publications revert to the less ambiguous English form when precision is required, thus acknowledging the flawed nature of their standard practice.Wink [;)]
  
, , ,
MrPedantic  #463170  Fri, 11 Jan 08 10:23 PM

 Anonymous wrote:

The preceeding shows ignorance and irritating arrogance on the part of the poster.

The preceding, Anon.

All the best,

MrP
  
Top 10 Contributor
Joined on Wed, Oct 13 2004
Veteran Member (12,053)
Proficient SpeakerSystemAdministrator
...opella forensis / adducit febris...
Anonymous  #491679  Sat, 22 Mar 08 03:08 AM

But what about: "When will we go," the boy asked?
  
Anonymous  #512486  Sun, 11 May 08 04:24 PM

When using quotations the punctuation mark should be inside the quotes.  

For example; "But Mr. Sonbercome, I didn't know that was your wallet I found on the ground.  When did you drop it?"

You should NOT do this; "I cant believe you got me a car for my 16th Birthday"!
  
Anonymous  #573798  Mon, 06 Oct 08 05:06 PM
These punctuation marks (the British call them inverted commas) come in two forms, double and single. The double quotation marks (opening “ and closing ”) are used to enclose the words of a direct quotation: She said, “I’ll never see you again.” (They are never used in indirect quotation: She said she’d never see him again.) They are also used to enclose words or phrases quoted from others or words that may be slang or that are in some other way being used peculiarly: The speaker tried to put a favorable “spin” on his denial. The “pacification plan” was in fact simply a euphemism for a bloody conquest. But be sparing: most editors discourage the use of such quotation marks for effect rather than for a substantive reason, and overuse of these marks in any writing is affected.  1
  Convention also calls for double quotation marks around the titles of short stories, short poems, short musical compositions, and the names of plays, chapters in books, and radio and television programs: Frost’s “The Road Not Taken,” “Eye Witness News.” (Titles of longer works usually require italics instead, and sometimes the decision is arbitrary or simply conventional: books of the Bible, for example, are almost always italicized rather than placed in quotation marks, and the same is true of the titles of Shakespeare’s plays.)  2
  A key problem with quotation marks is which other marks of punctuation go inside the closing quotation mark(s) and which belong outside. In the United States, most stylebooks and most editors follow these rules: periods and commas belong inside, colons and semicolons outside. Other marks—question mark, dash, and exclamation point, for example—go inside when they belong with the quoted material, outside when they belong to the main sentence. British editorial conventions differ.  3
  When quoting a long passage of two or more paragraphs, the usual procedure in written American English is to use no quotation marks and instead to set off the entire passage of quoted matter by indenting it. If you decide to use quotation marks instead, however, the usual procedure is to begin each paragraph of the long quotation with quotation marks but to use a closing quotation mark only at the end of the final sentence in the quoted passage. In any event, use only one of these methods with any given quotation. See also POETRY.  4
  British publishers frequently use single quotation marks (opening ‘ and closing ’) where Americans use double quotation marks. In American writing, however, single quotation marks are restricted mainly to enclosing a quotation within a quotation: The dealer said, “I’m sorry, I thought you said ‘I pass.’” Note that a period goes inside both final quotation marks when the two quotations end together.
  
, , , , , , ,
Anonymous  #575413  Sat, 11 Oct 08 12:14 PM
Thank you. I understand what you have given as guidance for punctuation within quotes. However, could yould you clarify the following:

If a single "slang" word is put in quotes and comes as the last word in the sentance, e.g. .... the universe is made of strange "stuff". Then doesn't the period go outside the quotation mark and not inside. It looks so strange if you put it inside.

I am very interested in getting this right, since I am an English writer, and used to English grammar, but I am preparing a manuscript for an American publisher, therefore am quite prepared to defer to the American rules! I have referred to the Chicago Manual of Style, but have not so far found the answer to this particular query.
Thanks.
Jodi.
  
, , ,
1 2 3
AddThis Feed Button RSS Feed: ESL General English Grammar Questions
© 2008 MediaCET Ltd.
Terms and Conditions & Terms of Service