Quotation marks are punctuation marks that are used to indicate the exact words that someone has spoken or written. When it comes to quoting a question, there are a few rules that you need to follow to ensure proper grammar and clarity. In this article, we will discuss the quotation rules with question marks.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction
Quotation marks are punctuation marks that are used to indicate the exact words that someone has spoken or written. When it comes to quoting a question, there are a few rules that you need to follow to ensure proper grammar and clarity. In this article, we will discuss the quotation rules with question marks.
Quoting a Question
When you are quoting a question that ends with a question mark, you should include the question mark inside the quotation marks. For example, "What time is it?" is correctly quoted as "What time is it?"
If the question is part of a larger sentence, the question mark should still be included inside the quotation marks. For example, "She asked me, 'What time is it?'"
Quoting a Question within a Question
If you need to quote a question that is already inside a sentence that is also a question, you will need to use single quotation marks. For example, "Did she ask, 'What time is it?'"
If the sentence is a statement that includes a question, the question mark should be placed outside of the quotation marks. For example, "I asked her if she knew, 'What time is it'?"
Quoting a Question with Emphasis
If you want to emphasize a word or phrase in a quoted question, you can use italics or capitalization. However, the question mark should still be included inside the quotation marks. For example, "Did you really say, 'I don't care'?"
Quoting a Question with Other Punctuation
If the question is part of a larger sentence that requires other punctuation, you should include the other punctuation outside of the quotation marks. For example, "She asked, 'What time is it?' and then left the room."
Question and Answer
Q: What if the question is a statement that includes a question?
A: The question mark should be placed outside of the quotation marks.
Q: How do I emphasize a word or phrase in a quoted question?
A: You can use italics or capitalization, but the question mark should still be inside the quotation marks.
Conclusion
Quoting a question requires following a few simple rules to ensure proper grammar and clarity. By including the question mark inside the quotation marks, using single quotation marks for nested questions, and properly emphasizing words or phrases, you can effectively quote questions in your writing.
