Use quotation marks when you repeat someone's exact words, when you name short works like articles, poems, songs and chapters, and when you point to a word as a word or use it in an unusual or doubtful sense. Don't use them for paraphrases, for emphasis or for long block quotes. In American English, commas and periods go inside the closing quotation mark.
Those are the core rules. The rest of this guide explains each one with examples, covers punctuation placement and lists the mistakes that trip writers up most often.
Rule 1: Direct quotations
Quotation marks show your reader that the words belong to someone else, exactly as they said or wrote them.
Our coach told us, "Practice the boring drills until they're automatic."
In academic writing, the quotation marks plus a citation tell the reader whose language it is and where to find it.
Morales (2022) describes the reform as "a slow victory won one district at a time" (p. 48).
Leaving off the quotation marks while keeping the author's wording is a common form of plagiarism, even if you cite the source. If you're unsure whether you've changed enough to drop the quotes, read our guide to mosaic plagiarism.
Quoting part of a sentence
You don't have to quote whole sentences. Quoting a short phrase and blending it into your own sentence is often smoother.
Morales calls the reform "a slow victory," arguing that change came district by district.
Make sure the quotation marks cover every copied word.
Changing a quote
If you shorten a quote, use an ellipsis (…) to show where words were removed. If you add or change a word for clarity or grammar, put it in square brackets.
"The reform … was a slow victory." "[The district] voted twice before approving it."
Never change a quote in a way that alters its meaning.
Indirect quotations
When you report what someone said without using their exact words, skip the quotation marks.
Our coach said that we should keep practicing the basic drills.
Rule 2: Titles of short works
Quotation marks typically go around the titles of shorter works or parts of larger works. Longer, standalone works are usually italicized.
| Use quotation marks | Use italics |
|---|---|
| Article titles | Newspaper and magazine names |
| Book chapters | Book titles |
| Short stories and poems | Novels and long poems |
| Song titles | Album titles |
| TV episode titles | TV series names |
| Web page titles | Website names (varies by style) |
I read "The River Remembers," a short story in the anthology Northern Lights.
Citation styles handle titles differently in reference lists. APA style, for example, doesn't put quotation marks around article titles in the reference list, while MLA does in its works-cited entries. Check your style's rules for the list at the end, and use the conventions above in running text.
Rule 3: Words used as words, or in a special sense
Quotation marks can mark a word you're talking about rather than using normally. Many style guides prefer italics for this, so check your guide.
The word "literally" is often used to mean its opposite.
They can also signal that a term is unusual, new or used ironically. These are sometimes called scare quotes.
The "shortcut" added forty minutes to our trip.
Use scare quotes sparingly. They tell the reader you doubt the word, which can come across as sarcastic.
Rule 4: Dialogue
In fiction and narrative writing, each new speaker's words go in quotation marks, usually starting a new paragraph.
"Are you coming?" Maya asked.
"In a minute," said Leo. "Let me find my keys."
When one speaker's words run across several paragraphs, many styles leave off the closing quotation mark at the end of each paragraph but open each new one with a quotation mark.
Punctuation with quotation marks
This is where most errors happen. These are the American English conventions.
Periods and commas go inside.
She called it "unfinished." I called it "ready," and we argued.
Colons and semicolons go outside.
He promised a "short meeting"; it lasted two hours.
Question marks and exclamation points depend on meaning. Inside if they belong to the quote; outside if they belong to your sentence.
She asked, "Is the library open?" Did she really say "the library is open"?
Citations come after the closing quote, then the period.
The author calls it "a slow victory" (Morales, 2022, p. 48).
British English usually puts periods and commas inside only when they're part of the original quote. Follow the convention your class or publication uses.
Introducing quotes smoothly
A quote dropped into a paragraph without introduction (sometimes called a "dropped quote") leaves the reader guessing who's speaking and why it matters. Use a signal phrase to introduce it and a sentence afterward to explain it.
As Morales (2022) puts it, the reform was "a slow victory won one district at a time" (p. 48). That image of gradual progress helps explain why early critics declared it a failure.
Signal phrases such as "argues," "notes," "warns" and "suggests" also tell the reader how the author is making the point. Choose the verb carefully: "claims" can sound skeptical, while "shows" implies you accept the evidence.
Quotes within quotes
In American English, use double quotation marks for the main quote and single marks for a quote inside it.
My sister told me, "The teacher said 'no phones in class,' so I left mine in my locker."
British English often does the reverse.
Long quotations
Very long quotes are usually set as a block quotation: indented, without quotation marks. The cutoff depends on the style. APA uses block format for quotations of 40 words or more, for example, and MLA uses it for prose quotes longer than four lines. The indentation replaces the quotation marks, so don't add both.
Long quotes should be rare in student papers. A paraphrase with a short quoted phrase is usually stronger. See paraphrasing vs. summarizing for help deciding.
Common mistakes
- Using quotes for emphasis. "Fresh" fish on a sign makes customers wonder whether it really is fresh. Rewrite or use italics if your style allows.
- Quoting a paraphrase. If the words are yours, no quotation marks.
- Forgetting to close the quote. Every opening mark needs a closing one, except in multi-paragraph dialogue.
- Double punctuation. Don't add a period after a quoted question that ends your sentence: She asked, "Are you ready?" not "Are you ready?".
- Quoting common phrases. Everyday expressions like "time flies" don't need quotes unless you're discussing the phrase itself.
- Missing citations. Quotation marks show whose words they are; a citation shows where they came from. Academic writing needs both.
Quotation marks and plagiarism checks
If you run your paper through a similarity checker, properly quoted and cited passages will usually still show as matches. That's expected. Instructors look at whether matches are quoted and cited, not just at the overall percentage. The problems are matches without quotation marks.
Key takeaways
- Use quotation marks for exact words, titles of short works, and words used as words or in a special sense.
- Don't use them for paraphrases, emphasis or block quotes.
- In American English, periods and commas go inside; colons and semicolons go outside; question marks depend on meaning.
- In academic writing, pair every quote with a citation.