Compositors―people who layout printed material with type―made the original rule that placed periods and commas inside quotation marks
to protect the small metal pieces of type from breaking off the end of the sentence
. The quotation marks protected the commas and periods.
Do commas go inside quotation marks?
Put commas and periods within quotation marks
, except when a parenthetical reference follows. He said, “I may forget your name, but I never forget a face.” … Place the punctuation outside the closing quotation marks if the punctuation applies to the whole sentence.
Why do we use commas before quotation marks?
As a general rule, you should use a
comma to introduce quoted material or dialogue
. That's because in most types of dialogue, the quoted material stands apart from the surrounding text. In grammatical terms, it's “syntactically independent.”
Where does the punctuation go when using quotation marks?
In American usage,
periods and commas typically go inside of quotation marks
. When you're quoting someone's exact words, introduce the quote with open quotation marks, and end the quote with a period or comma and closing quotation marks.
Does the period go outside the parentheses?
In summary: If the parenthetical is part of a larger sentence, then the sentence housing the parenthetical takes care of the punctuation—commas,
periods, and anything else will go outside the parentheses
.
Do periods go inside quotes MLA?
The final period or comma goes inside the quotation marks
, even if it is not a part of the quoted material, unless the quotation is followed by a citation. If a citation in parentheses follows the quotation, the period follows the citation.
Do you put a comma before or after but?
You should only put a comma before “but” when connecting two independent clauses
. For example, this usage of “but” does not take a comma: “To quack but to have no one hear is a sad thing for a duck.”
What do quotation marks look like?
Quotation marks can be
double
(“…”) or single (‘…') – that is really a matter of style (but see below for more about this). Quotation marks are also called “quotes” or “inverted commas”. 1.
What are single quotation marks used for?
Single quotation marks are also known as ‘quote marks', ‘quotes', ‘speech marks' or ‘inverted commas'. Use them to:
show direct speech and the quoted work of other writers
.
How do you punctuate quotes in an essay?
Introduction to punctuating quotations in an essay
In most literature essays, it's better to use shorter quotations in a precise way rather than write out very long quotations. You can
use single inverted commas ‘ ‘ or double quotation marks “ ”
to punctuate the quotation.
How do you punctuate quotes?
- If you start by telling who said it, use a comma and then the first quotation mark. …
- If you put the quote first and then tell who said it, use a comma at the end of the sentence, and then the second quotation mark. …
- Punctuation always goes inside the quotation marks if it is a direct quote.
How do you end a sentence with ETC in parentheses?
Remember, the period in “etc.” signifies it's an abbreviation (et cetera), so
you need the period after the parentheses to complete the full stop
. Think of it as if you were writing: Sentence… (X, Y, Z, et cetera).
How do you end a sentence with a parenthesis?
- When the words in parentheses form a complete sentence, place a period inside the closing parenthesis. …
- When the words in parentheses are not a complete sentence, place the period outside the closing parenthesis.
Does period go inside parentheses examples?
Periods and Parentheses
When
a complete, independent sentence is entirely enclosed by parentheses, the period goes inside the closing parenthesis
. Charlie scarfed up every Cheeto that fell out of the bag. … But, if the parenthetical material is nested inside another sentence, the period should go on the outside.
Does the period go after the quote in APA?
The punctuation for
the sentence goes AFTER the parenthesis
. If your quote is forty words or more, set it off in a block text by beginning a new line, indenting one inch, and do not add quotation marks. At the end of the quote put the period after the last word of the sentence followed by the parentheses.
Do superscripts go inside period?
Superscript numbers are
placed after quotation marks, commas and periods
. They are placed before semicolons and colons.
