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If I quote someone, the quote ends in a period, and I end the sentence with the quote, where do I put the period? Inside the quotation marks or outside the quotation marks? I'm tempted to put a period inside the quotation marks and a period outside the quotation marks, but I know that's wrong (and it also looks stupid).

Update: I use British English rules for quotation marks. I could find advice for American grammar, but not British.

Laurel
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  • https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/524239/placement-of-period-in-quotation-or-definition-at-end-of-sentence-american-rule – Cascabel_StandWithUkraine_ May 24 '21 at 16:33
  • Does this answer your question? Placement of period in quotation or definition at end of sentence (American rule) – mike65535 May 24 '21 at 16:35
  • No. I use British English rules for quotation marks. Thank you for wanting to help. –  May 24 '21 at 16:35
  • There is no single set of "British English rules" for quotation marks; different publishers do things slightly differently. The Guardian will put the period inside the quotes in your situation. – Peter Shor May 24 '21 at 16:45
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    The Oxford Guide to Style gives examples where the period goes inside and other examples where it goes outside, and I don't understand exactly what their rules are. – Peter Shor May 24 '21 at 16:53
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    Wars have been fought over this issue. – Hot Licks May 24 '21 at 17:58
  • Using the term 'British English rules' here precludes a proper analysis. And the type of quote is an important factor. If the spoken word is being rendered in a written/typed format, obviously punctuation is an artifact. But where the written word is being reproduced, there will probably be existing punctuation that perhaps needs to be faithfully reproduced. << The boy's attempt was ' "Help me!". ' . >> – Edwin Ashworth May 24 '21 at 18:19
  • Perhaps it would be too discouraging to ask what one is supposed to do when one is reproducing written material already containing quotes, from people using differing conventions. – Edwin Ashworth May 24 '21 at 18:26
  • I don't think that this should have been closed for lack of research. The OP says "I could find advice for American grammar, but not British." And the Guaridan article I found gives an example of an article which (in their opinion) get it wrong. (And from researching my answer, I can vouch that that's not the only one.) Voting to reopen. – Peter Shor May 25 '21 at 16:19
  • This isn't about "American grammar" or "British grammar". It's about writing style, not grammar. – tchrist May 25 '21 at 19:36
  • Use either Oxford, or Cambridge dictionaries which give ample guidance for quotation marks and their use.. One could also go back, I guess, to using D. Farro's "The Royal Universal British Grammar and Vocabulary" of 1754, or for Samuel Johnson's of 1755. The guidance is the same. ..or go back mid 1500s and just put the " mark at the beginning of the line of text to denote there's a quote in that line. That's when quotes were first discovered in texts. Cheers. – Steve B053 May 26 '21 at 05:25

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There is no single set of "British rules" for when you put a full stop inside and when you put it outside the quotation marks. Different British publishers have different rules.

Look at this article from the Guardian, which gives examples of the different rules that different publishers have. One thing the author says is that putting a full stop outside the quotes in the situation you are asking about, when a full sentence is quoted, "makes me shudder." So to keep the Guardian from shuddering, I would advise putting the full stop inside in this case. The Oxford Guide to Style also recommends putting the period inside the quote if you are quoting a complete sentence (except if the quote is a "explanation or specimen", and while they give examples of these, I think this is to some extent a subjective decision).

[But, for example, should the full stop after "makes me shudder" in my sentence above go inside or outside the quote? Some publishers would say outside, because a full sentence isn't being quoted. But I believe others would say inside, because there was a period there in the original quote. I think either decision is fine, as long as you're consistent.]

Peter Shor
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