But it is important to realize that inverted commas or quotation marks can be either single or double. Inverted commas are mainly used to introduce quotations or direct speech. This is why the name quotation mark is used as a synonym for inverted commas. A direct quote the exact words spoken or written must be always written inside quotation marks. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.
See the example below:. Quotation marks can also be used to introduce a technical term that needs to be defined. In this case, you would only enclose it in quotation marks for its first mention:.
Quotations can also create ironic emphasis in a piece of writing. In the following example, read the word in quotation marks with a sarcastic tone:. To receive informative articles and tailored advice for academics and students, as well as updates about our exciting grant and scholarship opportunities, please subscribe to our blog.
Share this article. Quotation Marks and Direct Speech Quotation marks are used to enclose direct speech, or a direct quotation, that is less than 30 words long. Here are some examples: President Kennedy famously exclaimed "Ich bin ein Berliner! Note first that what is enclosed in quotes must be the exact words of the person being quoted.
Anything which is not part of those exact words must be placed outside the quotes, even if, as in the last example, this means using two sets of quotes because the quotation has been interrupted. There are three ways of fixing this. First, drop the quotes: Thomas Edison declared that genius was one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration.
Second, rewrite the sentence so that you can use Edison's exact words: According to Thomas Edison, "Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration. All three of these are perfect, since only Edison's exact words are enclosed in quotes.
Now notice something else which is very important: a quotation is set off by quotation marks and nothing else. A sentence containing a quotation is punctuated exactly like any other sentence apart from the addition of the quotation marks. You should not insert additional punctuation marks into the sentence merely to warn the reader that a quotation is coming up: that's what the quotation marks are for. Remember, a colon can never be followed by a hyphen or a dash.
Here is the sentence with proper punctuation: President Nixon declared "I am not a crook. No punctuation mark should be used if it is not necessary. On the other hand, the presence of quotation marks does not remove the necessity of using other punctuation which is required for independent reasons.
Look again at these examples: According to Thomas Edison, "Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration. Here is another example: Mae West had one golden rule for handling men: "Tell the pretty ones they're smart, and tell the smart ones they're pretty. Instead, it is doing what colons always do: it is introducing an explanation of what comes before the colon. It is merely a coincidence that what follows the colon happens to be a quotation.
This last example illustrates another point about quotations: the quotation inside the quote marks begins with a capital letter if it is a complete sentence, but not otherwise. Look once more at two versions of the Edison sentence: According to Thomas Edison, "Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration.
The first quotation is a complete sentence and therefore gets an initial capital letter ; the second is not a complete sentence and hence receives no capital. There is one situation in which the use of single quotes instead of double quotes can be rather a nuisance. This is one reason why I personally prefer to use double quotes: Stalin announced defiantly "Hitler's invasion of Russia will be no more successful than Napoleon's was. Things can get a little complicated when you cite a quotation that has another quotation inside it.
In this rare circumstance, the rule is to set off the internal quotation with the other type of quotation marks. My answer: you should rewrite the sentence. Otherwise, you will simply lose your reader in a labyrinth of quotation marks. If you have a long quotation which you want to display indented in the middle of the page, you do not need to place quotes around it, though you should make sure that you identify it explicitly as a quotation in your main text.
Here is an example cited from G.
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