Because My Friend, Rachael, Asked...

Okay, this will be quick. My friend, Rachael, whom I love for many reasons, not the least of which is that she is a devoted reader of this blog, asked me to do a quick post about when to use quotation marks like this: "____" and when to use them like this: '______.'

Simple.

Use double quotation marks in all situations, except one: quotations within quotations. Use single quotation marks for quotations within quotations.

For example,

The CEO explained, "When I interviewed the candidate for the position, he told me that he was simply 'the best person for the job.'"

In the example above,  the comment by the candidate is a direct quotation within the larger quotation by the CEO. Note that there are three marks at the end of the sentence. The single mark indicates the end of the quotation within the quotation, and the double marks indicate the end of the larger quotation.

It could also look like this:

The CEO explained, "When I interviewed the candidate for the position, he told me that he was simply 'the best person for the job,' a comment which I found terribly arrogant."

This makes sense, yes?

As an aside, keep in mind that commas and periods always belong inside the quotation marks. I see it the other way ALL THE TIME. Ugh!

On the other hand, question marks and exclamation marks should go either inside or outside the quotation marks, depending on whether they are part of the direct quotation or part of the entire sentence.

For example,

He said, "Do you love me?"

In this case, the quotation, itself, is a question, so the question mark belongs inside.

In contrast,

Did he say "I love you"?

In this case, the quotation is a statement, not a question. The question is the entire sentence, so the question mark belongs on the outside.

Oh my goodness, isn't grammar fun? I have all kinds of endorphins going on just writing about it.

Thanks, Rachael!