To Set Off Direct Quotations

Place quotation marks before and after spoken words.

“Rosa Parks is one of our true American heroes,” the teacher reminded her students.

Placement of Punctuation

Put periods and commas that come at the end of quoted words inside quotation marks.

Trey said, “Let’s make tuna sandwiches.”

“I like salami,” replied Richard.

Place question marks or exclamation points inside the quotation marks when they punctuate the quotation; place them outside when they punctuate the main sentence.

“Will we have chips and pickles?” asked Trey.

“Yes!” replied Rich.

Did you hear Mom say, “We’re out of pickles”?