How do I use a question as an embedded quotation when it also deserves a comma?

Question

So I asked "Shall I do the thing?" and he responded with "Yes."

In that sentence, should the ? exist? It kind of feels like it should be a comma, given its place in the sentence. Thing is, if I take away the comma, it loses its identity as a question.

What is the correct way to solve this?

That's interesting @PeterShor. Are you able to provide some more details about this rule and other uses in a full answer? I'd be happy to rename the question to make it more relevant for search. — RackAttack, Oct 30 '19 at 02:51
It is a mix of direct speech and indirect speech. It should be either [So, I asked, "Shall I do the thing?" He replied, "Yes"] or, [So I asked if I should do the thing and he consented.] — Ram Pillai, Oct 30 '19 at 04:30
Possible duplicate of How should I punctuate around quotes where the punctuation required by the quote interferes with the punctuation of the sentence? — Edwin Ashworth, Oct 30 '19 at 11:21

score 1 · Answer 1 · answered Oct 30 '19 at 09:35

In general, question marks and exclamation points trump commas. When a question mark (or exclamation point) and a comma should naturally both appear, the comma is left out.

According to this blog, the Chicago Manual of Style says

When a question mark or exclamation point appears at the end of a quotation where a comma would normally appear, the comma is omitted.

The blog points out that there is an exception when the question mark or exclamation is part of a title. In this case, style guides offer differing advice on what to do.

A very obvious duplicate (multi- in fact), but I can't see the CMoS rule spelled out verbatim elsewhere. — Edwin Ashworth, Oct 30 '19 at 11:26

How do I use a question as an embedded quotation when it also deserves a comma?

1 Answers1