Punctuation and Quotations
Consider whether punctuation should be inside or outside the quotation. In
the UK, logic dictates where the punctuation should be placed. In the US,
punctuation is always placed inside the quotation. (In the US, it is kept
simple.)
 Did she really say, "I love you"? 
 
("I love you" is not a question, but the whole sentence is. Using UK
convention, the question mark should be outside the quotation.)
I heard him yell, "Do you love me?"
(The whole sentence is not a question, but the quotation is a question.)
Did she really ask, "Do you love me?"?
(unwieldy
but acceptable)
(too unwieldy
for US tastes)
(Why two question marks? The sentence is a question, and the quotation is a question.)
Did she really ask, "Do you love
me?"
(Only one question mark is required for both questions - even in UK convention.
See below.)
Leniency with Punctuation
Logically, the first and second examples above should be written:
Did she really say, "I love you."?
(full stop after the sentence in the quotation)
I heard him yell, "Do you love me?".
(full stop after the sentence)
However, a full stop or a question mark within a quotation at the end of sentence
negates the need for the real end punctuation.
For example:
She looked in the oven and said: "Do you call that a Yorkshire
pudding?"
(This sentence could end in a full stop, but it would look unwieldy
after the question mark and the quotation mark. Therefore, it
is omitted.)
question
mark outside the quotation - correct
(UK magazine article)
question mark inside the quotation - correct
(letter in a UK newspaper)
Choose the Neatest
There is a lot on leniency on this subject. In general, you should choose the neatest end punctuation or the most appropriate.
It is unusual to use two end punctuation marks.
"You can keep half of the strawberries you pick", shouted Charlie,
looking over the hedge.
(In this example, the writer opted not to use a full stop after
"pick" even though it is the end of a sentence.)
(Under US convention, there would be no period after "pick", but the
comma would be inside the quotation mark.)
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Common grammar errors
