This article will provide you with a short definition for quotations, along with 19+ quotation examples with detailed explanations.
Now, let’s look at some examples of how quotations may be used in sentences:
- Mahira looked at Rahul and said, “Let me know if you need any help with walking your dog.”
- Ms. Smita eyed Shekhar and said, “People who wear the uniform incorrectly will not be allowed to sit for their exams.”
- “Could you please pass me that toy,” Shreya asked Kavitri.
- “How should I know that you’re telling the truth now when you’ve lied to me previously, ” Preity asked Aishwarya.
- “I really need a long break from school to replenish myself,” he said.
- Rea pointed at a billboard and said, “Oh, that movie will be out tonight. Do you want to go and watch it together?”
- “Are you sure about this,” Jai asked Kartik as they got ready to jump into the lake.
- “How did your exams go?” my mother asked as soon as I entered the house.
- “What are you doing in the woods so late at night,” the wolf asked Little Red Riding Hood.
- “Why aren’t you studying?” I asked, “aren’t you scared of failing?”
- In the song Shake it Off, Taylor Swift claims to have “nothing” in her brain in order to reference her awareness of how she is perceived by many of her haters.
- According to Shashi, the location of the auditorium is “inconvenient and dirty.”
- It was Nelson Mandela who said that it’s not “an act of charity” to overcome poverty, but “an act of justice.”
- “I don’t understand,” Shyla said, “why is everyone talking about how pretty the sky is today?”
- Rhea referred to her sleep cycle as “completely unpredictable”: on some days she was up at 5, and on other days she slept in till noon.
- Rob cut the call after telling Jeffrey “I can’t hear you”; it was the middle of the night and he needed his sleep.
- Does your dog always bring back the ball when you say “fetch”?
- Sam said, “Rohan said he ‘cannot stand playing football’ with me.”
- My favourite poem is “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou.
- I think the final episode of Breaking Bad was titled “Felina.”
Now, let’s look at some detailed explanations for the 19+ Quotation Examples in Sentences:
Mahira looked at Rahul and said, “Let me know if you need any help with walking your dog.”
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what Mahira had said to Rahul. The quotation is considered “direct” because it gives an exact reproduction of Mahira’s words. The first letter inside the quotation is capitalised because it is not a continuation of another sentence (in other words, it is a complete quotation).
Ms. Smita eyed Shekhar and said, “People who wear the uniform incorrectly will not be allowed to sit for their exams.”
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what Ms. Smita said to Shekhar. Since it’s a direct and complete quotation, the quote is preceded by a comma and the first letter of the sentence is capitalised.
“Could you please pass me that toy,” Shreya asked Kavitri.
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what Shreya said to Kavitri. Since it’s a direct quotation, the second quotation mark (”) is preceded by a comma.
“How should I know that you’re telling the truth now when you’ve lied to me previously, ” Preity asked Aishwarya.
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what Preity asked Aishwarya. Since it’s a direct quotation, the second quotation mark (”) is preceded by a comma.
“I really need a long break from school to replenish myself,” he said.
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what the subject said. Since it’s a direct quotation, the second quotation mark (”) is preceded by a comma.
Rea pointed at a billboard and said, “Oh, that movie will be out tonight. Do you want to go and watch it together?”
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what Rea said. Since it’s a direct and complete quotation, the quote is preceded by a comma and the first letter of the sentence is capitalised. Note that the question mark will remain inside the quote because the entire sentence isn’t a question.
“Are you sure about this,” Jai asked Kartik as they got ready to jump into the lake.
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what Jai asked Kartik. Since it’s a direct quotation, the second quotation mark (”) is preceded by a comma.
“How did your exams go?” my mother asked as soon as I entered the house.
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of the subject’s mother asked her. Since it’s a direct quotation, the second quotation mark (”) is preceded by a comma.
“What are you doing in the woods so late at night,” the wolf asked Little Red Riding Hood.
In this example, double quotations are used to give a direct quotation of what the wolf said to Little Red Riding Hood. Since it’s a direct quotation, the second quotation mark (”) is preceded by a comma.
“Why aren’t you studying?” I asked, “aren’t you scared of failing?”
In this example, a comma is used to interrupt or bring a break to the original dialogue or quotation. In this case, the first letter of the second quotation does not need to be capitalised—since it is not a complete quotation in and off itself. The question marks are inside the quotation marks because only the quoted parts of the sentence are questions.
In the song “Shake It Off,” Taylor Swift claims to have “nothing” in her brain in order to reference her awareness of how she is perceived by many of her haters.
In this example, the word inside the quotation marks isn’t capitalised because it is not a complete sentence. Short works, including songs, are usually referenced using quotation marks.
According to Shashi, the location of the auditorium is “inconvenient and dirty.”
In this example, the word inside the quotation marks isn’t capitalised because it is not a complete sentence.
It was Nelson Mandela who said that it’s not “an act of charity” to overcome poverty, but “an act of justice.”
In this example, neither of the quotes start with capital letters because neither are complete sentences.
“I don’t understand,” Shyla said, “why is everyone talking about how pretty the sky is today?”
In this example, the second quote does not need to start with a capitalised letter because it elaborates on what the first quote is saying.
Rhea referred to her sleep cycle as “completely unpredictable”: on some days she was up at 5, and on other days she slept in till noon.
Unlike commas, semicolons are placed outside quotes.
Rob cut the call after telling Jeffrey “I can’t hear you”; it was the middle of the night and he needed his sleep.
Like semicolons, colons are also always placed outside quotes.
Does your dog always bring back the ball when you say “fetch”?
In this example, the question mark is placed outside the quotes because the entire sentence is a question.
Sam said, “Rohan said he ‘cannot stand playing football’ with me.”
When you have quotes inside quotes, you should use single quotation marks (‘’).
My favourite poem is “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou.
Short works, including poems, are usually referenced using quotation marks. In this case, the start of the quote is capitalised because it alludes to a proper noun.
I think the final episode of Breaking Bad was titled “Felina.”
Short works, including tv show episodes, are usually referenced using quotation marks. In this case, the start of the quote is capitalised because it alludes to a proper noun.
Quotation definition
Quotations (“”) are used on both sides of phrases that have either been previously written or spoken by someone other than the writer.
When to use quotation?
In general, quotation marks must be used whenever you are referencing another person’s exact words—whether they are dialogues from a film, an extract from a poem or a novel, or an exact replication of something a friend has told you.
Why to use quotation ?
In fiction, quotations help make it clear which character is speaking and what they are saying. In all other types of writing, it helps indicate which words are the writer’s own thoughts and which thoughts he is drawing from others.
How to use quotation ?
When using quotations, remember the following rules:
- If you open a quotation with a quotation mark (“), you must always remember to close it with another quotation mark.
- The first letter inside the quotation is capitalised only if what’s being quoted is a complete sentence.
- The first letter inside the quotation is not capitalised if what’s being quoted is an incomplete thought or sentence.
- Periods and commas are always placed before the closing punctuation mark.
- Question marks and exclamations are also usually placed before the closing punctuation mark, unless the entire sentence (and not just the quoted part of the sentence) is a question or an exclamation.
- Semicolons and colons are placed outside the closing quotation mark.
- If you have a quote inside a quote, you can use single quotation marks (‘’) inside double quotation marks (“”).
Broken quotation examples
E.g 1:“Why aren’t you studying?” I asked, “aren’t you scared of failing?”
When a quotation is broken, it means that the first quotation is interrupted with a comma. In this case, the first letter of the second quotation does not need to be capitalised—since it is not a complete quotation in and off itself.
E.g 2: It was Nelson Mandela who said that it’s not “an act of charity” to overcome poverty, but “an act of justice.”
A quotation is also considered broken if it does not fully cover a sentence or a thought expressed by another person. In these cases, again, the quotation need not begin with a capital letter.
Intertextuality quotation examples
Intertextuality refers to different texts being influenced by and borrowing thoughts from each other. Therefore, if you are quoting another text—that is an example of intertextuality.
E.g. When he saw his sister struggling with her maths homework, Nikhil said something he’d read Dumbledore say in the Harry Potter books: “It’s our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
Hi, I am Srishti Mukherjee. I have completed my M.A. in English.
I always like to explore new zones in the field of English Literature
Apart from this, I like to read Novels and watch movies.