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Category_MWW Blog>The Quotation Mark
...don't mean "will" will...
As long as I have been in this field, I have never been asked this question until recently -- and it has come up at least ten times in the past six months! Weird.
What do we do with this?
...I do...
Category_MWW Blog>The Comma
Quotes and the Words That Get Us Into Them
The term "lead-in words" is used to describe the words that introduce quotes. Traditionally they are
...I said...
...did he ask...
...she replied...
...did you state...
Some of the "modern" innov...
Category_MWW Blog>The Quotation Mark
Quotes and Caps
The first word of a quote is capped if it starts a grammatically complete sentence or a fragment that stands for a complete thought. It is not capped if it is a fragment.
...Q When did you leave...
Category_MWW Blog>The Quotation Mark
Question Marks and Quotes
A question came up on Facebook about a question mark inside the quote when the sentence goes on.
...When he asked, "Are you serious?" did you respond in...
...He said something like "Are you comin...
Category_MWW Blog>The Comma
The Answer "No"
When an attorney has asked a compound question
...Do you remember whether Ray was there?...
and the response he gets is "No," there is another question to be asked.
..."No," you don't remember? ...
Category_MWW Blog>The Quotation Mark
Comma Before a Predicate Nominative
A "predicate nominative" is a noun or pronoun that follows a condition verb and renames the subject.
...My mom is an engineer...
...Her name is the same as mine...
...She became a lawyer...
Somet...
Category_MWW Blog>The Dash
Quotation Marks and the Dash
Whether you want the dash inside or outside quotation marks when there is an interruption is really a matter of personal preference.
When the quote is interrupted, you might decide to put the dash...
Category_MWW Blog>The Comma
Awkward Quotes
When someone chooses to switch into quotes after the word that, you just have no choice but to use quotation marks (despite the fact that your trusty English teacher told you never to use quotes af...
Category_MWW Blog>The Quotation Mark
An Interesting Quote Question
This was a FB question:
...It is a "Don't worry. It's okay. I understand" situation...
It is okay to have the periods in the middle of the quoted material that is an adjective.
Commas don't work...