Questions about quotations, a group of words taken from a text or speech and repeated by someone other than the original author or speaker.
-1
votes
0answers
25 views
When quoting a person's informal speech, how much liberty do you have to make changes to what they say? [migrated]
Even during a formal interview for a news article, people speak informally. They say "uhm", they cut off sentences half-way through, they interject phrases like "you know?", and they make innocent ...
1
vote
1answer
60 views
What does “The insolence of wealth will creep out” mean?
Can anyone paraphrase the following statement by Samuel Johnson?
The insolence of wealth will creep out.
3
votes
2answers
261 views
Punctuation with block-quotes
How do I properly place a comma after a big block-quote? Let's say I have a sentence like this:
The author states: < a big quote goes here. >, therefore...
Since my sentence continues after ...
-3
votes
2answers
79 views
Parenthesis and quotations having punctuation before AND after them [closed]
I'll have to come up with some examples to show you my question:
I know if a sentence is inside either, the punctuation is inside (I also know I use a lot of comma splices. I think of the way the ...
5
votes
4answers
2k views
Where should the period be put when an entire sentence is quoted at the end of a sentence?
As in the following:
A common proverb is: “A rolling stone gathers no moss.”
A common proverb is: “A rolling stone gathers no moss”.
A common proverb is: “A rolling stone gathers no ...
12
votes
2answers
928 views
Any reference on the usage of a backtick and single quotation mark like `this'?
Why do I sometimes see a backtick with a single quote `like this'? What's the name of this usage? What are some good references so I can find more information by myself?
2
votes
1answer
129 views
Serial commas in quotations
If the publication you are proofing for uses the serial comma, and an essay you're proofing includes a quotation from a biography that does not use a serial comma, is it permissible to silently add ...
0
votes
1answer
63 views
How to quote a list from a paper? [closed]
I'm writing a paper and I need to quote the following list:
Step1: Compute the center of each triangle and the correspondences between the center and three vertexes of the
triangle;
Step2: Set up ...
1
vote
1answer
41 views
How do you use ellipses in conjunction with semicolons in MLA quoting? [closed]
Here is a line of text from Willa Cather’s My Ántonia.
There was only—spring itself; the throb of it, the light restlessness...
I wish to end the quote at the semicolon. Eg:
"There was ...
3
votes
2answers
261 views
When should you use italics to reference an example and when should it be inside apostrophes?
When should you use italics to reference an example or quote, and when should it be inside apostrophes instead?
(I am trying to tighten up here. I write in advertising and we break so many rules with ...
3
votes
2answers
368 views
Plurals and possessives of quoted words [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Marking plural of code words
Pluralizing Keywords in Programming Languages
After asking a number of questions on StackOverflow, I keep running into some of the same ...
30
votes
3answers
2k views
Why does the multi-paragraph quotation rule exist?
The answer to this question clearly explains the standard rule that when you have multiple quoted paragraphs, each new paragraph starts with an opening quotation mark, but only the final quoted ...
12
votes
5answers
4k views
Appropriate dash to use when attributing a quotation?
If I’m citing a poem or quotation, what kind of dash precedes the author’s name? Example:
This Business of Printing; which I am heartily tired of, and repent I e’er attempted. . . .
...
2
votes
3answers
325 views
Should one stick to American style of placing punctuation marks within quotes if one uses the American spelling?
According to Wikipedia, there are two ways to use punctation marks when it comes to quoting. Basically, we have the British style, where punctation marks that don't come from the quoted material "is ...
1
vote
1answer
69 views
What is the meaning of the quotation below?
“Perfection is a trifle dull. It is not the least of life’s ironies
that this, which we all aim at, is better not quite achieved.” — W. Somerset Maugham
-1
votes
1answer
101 views
Exclamation mark at the end of a quote and end of a sentence [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When should end punctuation go inside quotes?
Is the grammar at the end of the following sentence correct? If not, what should it be?
I was told in no uncertain ...
3
votes
3answers
161 views
Breaking comma rules to emphasize a pause in a character quote or elsewhere
My wife is writing a book, and just got a draft back from an editor.
The editor noted extra commas in numerous sentences like this:
He looked at her closely, but all she said was, "I am truly ...
3
votes
1answer
101 views
“He said, X” vs. “X, he said” vs. “X, said he”
I’ve long wondered how in reported speech, what sort of change in nuance is produced by switching around the normal order of the subject (that is, the speaker) and the “speech-related” verb (such as ...
2
votes
0answers
420 views
How to punctuate a quote within a quote? [duplicate]
Duplicate of:
What’s the difference between using single and double quotation marks/inverted commas?
How are embedded quotations used?
And:
When should end punctuation go inside quotes?
...
5
votes
4answers
409 views
Idiom for opportunistically exploiting a situation to one's advantage
I was wondering what various figures of speech could be used to describe a situation where somebody exploits a situation in order to push their own agenda. For example in Persian we have 'Catching a ...
15
votes
3answers
3k views
Should I fix typos/grammatical errors in quotation?
When writing papers, I meet typos/grammatical errors in references now and then. Should I correct them, or leave them as they are?
1
vote
1answer
109 views
Punctuation placement in speech [duplicate]
Possible Duplicates:
Is it ever acceptable for a period to come after a quote at the end of a sentence?
How much punctuation is appropriate when ending a sentence with a full-sentence ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
If you're using a quote with a period but do not want to end the sentence, do you keep the period?
For example. If I want to quote a passage from a writing, that says
The cake is not a lie.
and my sentence is:
The book by author states that "The cake is not a lie." however studies show ...
8
votes
7answers
4k views
What does “There but for the grace of God — goes God.” mean?
It is a supposedly witty paraprosdokian said by Churchill. But I (and possibly some other people whose first language is not English) don't get it. Can someone explain what it means? Do English native ...
1
vote
2answers
149 views
Why is there a [sic] in this passage?
The following passage comes from The American Journey (sixth edition), page 156. It's a quote of George F. Regas, addressing President George W. Bush (not in person). Notice the [sic] after the word ...
4
votes
2answers
230 views
Cleaning up / formatting verbatim quotations
Frequently, I have situations where I am in need of the ability to quote an individual who has written something verbatim that has some type of grammatical error. Although I would like to write it ...
1
vote
1answer
96 views
“What happens to the comma after an inquiring/exclaiming quotation?”, he wondered, as he posted to StackExchange [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How should I punctuate around quotes?
Forgive me for the creative title, because I'm not sure how else to ask this.
If you have a sentence like this...
"What's ...
4
votes
5answers
270 views
Word for using quotation as part of sentence
Is there a word to describe the co-opting of a well-known phrase in the course of regular conversation or writing? For example, a sentence regarding death might refer to "shaking off the mortal coil" ...
0
votes
0answers
28 views
How should punctuation marks be arranged next to quotation marks or parentheses? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When should end punctuation go inside quotes?
Where does the period go when using parentheses?
Here is an example:
My favorite word is "cat."
Here is another ...
4
votes
2answers
185 views
Punctuation following “along the lines of ”
When the phrase “along the lines of” introduces an indirect quote, what punctuation, if any, is used?
This is the original sentence that brought up the issue:
I heard replies along the lines of ...
2
votes
1answer
493 views
Is there a difference between Quotes and Italics? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What is the best way to mention a word: italics, quotes, or single-quotes (apostrophes)?
Would it make a difference whether I put a word in quotes or in italics?
Is ...
2
votes
2answers
343 views
Single quotes for single characters and double quotes for double?
I’ve been under the impression that you use single quotation marks for single characters or numerals.
Usage: ‘1’ or ‘a’ and not “1” or “a”.
(You would double quotation marks for anything longer than ...
301
votes
18answers
19k views
How do you quote a passage that has used '[sic]' mistakenly?
The usage of '[sic]' is well defined for quoting a passage that you believe has an error in it: nearest to the mistake you place '[sic]' within the quotes. For example, suppose I write a letter from I ...
9
votes
6answers
224 views
Changing a quotation so that the original is recognised, but has been given a new meaning
I didn't know how to phrase my title to make it meaningful to anyone, and I can't really explain it now, so I shall use an example:
The opening phrase on the DSGB website is "It's counting, Jim, but ...
1
vote
2answers
423 views
Capitalization and punctuation rules for formatted quotations appearing in the middle of the sentence
My question regards situations when the mid-sentence quotation, such as
This is a mid-sentence quotation which stands out by its formatting
, stands out by its formatting.
I understand that ...
5
votes
1answer
214 views
Changing person and tense in a quote
I'm reading Cranford (1853) by Elizabeth Gaskell, and encountered the following passage:
"Have you seen any numbers of Pickwick Papers?" said [Captain Brown]. (They were then publishing in parts.) ...
2
votes
2answers
607 views
Plurals of quotations: “Chorus of ‘Hello’s”; “Ooh”s & “Ah”s
Is there a way to pluralize a quotation? E.g.,
He was greeted with a chorus of “Hello”s.
or
Her daring earned “Ooh”s & “Ahh”s from around the room.
With actual dictionary words ...
3
votes
1answer
889 views
When quoting a quotation, how do you handle the double quotes?
Assume there is original source text:
This restaurant is amazing with "delicious lasagna" and great service.
Make sure you go 6-7pm for the quietest times.
I want to quote "delicious lasagna" ...
0
votes
4answers
219 views
Correct punctuation to introduce a supporting quote
What is the correct way to punctuate the end of a sentence before a quote that directly supports the statement? I assume either a colon or a semicolon, but I have no idea which is correct.
For ...
0
votes
1answer
180 views
Comment inside a quotation [closed]
How would I comment inside a quotation? Ex. if I had a quote "We randomly threw balls at the wall" and I wanted to clarify on what random signified could I do: "We randomly [by the process of using a ...
1
vote
1answer
184 views
Reading of the article “an” preceding quotations
Speakers often add “quote” or “quote, unquote” before quotations. But when a quotation is preceded by the article “an”, how should that article be pronounced?
As I understand, the choice between “a” ...
4
votes
2answers
91 views
How to quote in this situation?
Mark said, "it would ruin our school's reputation!"
If I want to quote Mark here,
Mark noted that doing so and so would "ruin _ school's reputation."
If I want to emphasize that Mark ...
2
votes
2answers
273 views
What do you do when you end the first part of a compound sentence with a quote? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How should I punctuate around quotes?
For example, if I want to show someone's response in the same sentence, what would I do?
Would the comma from the end of the quote ...
10
votes
3answers
1k views
Quoting a question at the end of a sentence which is itself a question
If my sentence is a question and ends with a quote of a question, where exactly do I put a question mark?
Did she ask, "Is it raining"?
Did she ask, "Is it raining?"?
Did she ask, "Is it ...
8
votes
2answers
825 views
Comma placement when using quotes that end with a question mark [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How should I punctuate around quotes?
I've been writing a letter to an editor, and one line of my response reads:
In your article "What Makes Free Will Free?" you ...
5
votes
3answers
844 views
Should a period be placed within quotation marks if it would conflict with a punctuated item that should be used or typed verbatim?
Gee whiz! Just when I thought I had the "period within quotation marks" rules set firmly in my personal punctuational code, I hit upon this sentence:
All message IDs are pre-pended with the value ...
5
votes
1answer
225 views
Is it acceptable to use 'that' followed by a direct quote?
New York Times:
Even before President Obama declared this month that “I have Israel’s
back” in its escalating confrontation with Iran, pro-Israel figures
like the evangelical Christian leader ...
5
votes
3answers
319 views
What can I do instead of [sic]?
I have a quote that has a misplaced "to":
... they will put you to back to sleep ...
It seems like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I can either:
Just delete the mistaken "to" (then I ...
-1
votes
1answer
86 views
Quotation Author? [closed]
I have searched various search engines and quote repositories for the author of this quotation:
That which needs be done, must be done!
However I have come up with a loss. Any help would be ...
3
votes
2answers
1k views
Do you capitalize a quoted word at the beginning of a sentence? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Should I change the structure of a sentence/add filler words to make sure that the sentence always starts with a capital letter?
As a concrete example, imagine that I'm ...
