Whom are you quoting?

Let’s talk about quotes, quotation marks, and how and when to use them.

Quotation marks are not only used to share the sayings of great men and women but also in everyday conversation.

Someone says something brilliant. It’s so clever that it gets shared and many people come to hear about it.

When it’s shared, this is how it’s done.

Shakespeare said, “All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players.”

Thiruvalluvar said. “As quickly as the hands move to catch the dress that’s falling off from the body, so quickly will a friend be at your side when you’re in trouble.”

“All the world’s a stage…” and “As quickly as…” are quotations.

In daily use

In the above examples, Shakespeare’s is an actual quotation. Thiruvalluvar’s quotation is a loose translation. The original, as you may know, is found in the Tamil classic, Thirukkural , written by him.

The word ‘Quotation’ is sometimes shortened to ‘Quote.’ So you could say, “Here’s a quotation from Kamala Harris.” Or you could say, “Here’s a quote from Kamala Harris.”

Quotations are usually placed between ‘Quotation Marks”. These are quotation marks “ ”.

Quotation marks are not only used to share the sayings of great men and women but also used in everyday conversation.

Mummy said, “Raju, have you finished your homework?”

Raju replied, “No Mummy, but I’ve finished the samosas .”

When we write about conversations that happen between two or more people and write the exact words they say, we use quotation marks. This is also known as ‘direct speech’. Sounds familiar?