Inverted commas

[flipnflap]

Which is the correct way to do inverted commas: [FOR EXAMPLE] 'Her mother said "Let's have tea" and boiled the kettle' OR "Her mother said 'Let's have tea' and boiled the kettle"?

[cathfromsaron]

chuck has used the diminutive of 'it is' though!

[Davethedog]

I was going to comment but I can see I am in a minefield.

Tiptoes away and shuts door.

[Quizmonster]

It never ceases to amaze me how many people - simply because they SPEAK English - believe they know how it WORKS. This is the exact equivalent of imagining you are an ace mechanic because you've got a driving licence!

Listen to Mike11111, Flipnflap.

[ladyalex]

Mike's right.

[Gavmacp]

Has the kettle boiled?

[Zeuhl]

Mine's a vodka and tonic when you've stopped p122ing about with the kettle

[Kiki-frog]

If the question is purely about inverted commas, then both are correct. However, if you pick up any book published in Britain, you will find that most publishers use single quotes for speech, with double quotes inside if needed, as per your first example. American publishers usually go for the latter. (I'm a smartarse editor, so I'm paid to know about tedious stuff like this!)

[Gavmacp]

I've called an electrician.

[Prudie]

I don't think there should be any commas or fullstops, especially not before 'and'.
Her mother said "Let's have tea" and boiled the kettle.
Similar to - Her mother smiled and boiled the kettle.

[naomi24]

Mike's right if he's American.

See these two examples.

English: "Bindle", to today’s youth, means "a small pack of drug powder".

American: "Bindle," to today’s youth, means "a small pack of drug powder."

http://www.grammar-mo...tuation_in_or_out.htm

[jno]

either. Some prefer double quotes outside and single quotes inside; others prefer the opposite. you could have a comma after tea but it's not really necessary.

Here's the Guardian's online guide:

Use double quotes at the start and end of a quoted section, with single quotes for quoted words within that section. Place full points and commas inside the quotes for a complete quoted sentence; otherwise the point comes outside – "Anna said: 'Your style guide needs updating,' and I said: 'I agree.' " but: "Anna said updating the guide was 'a difficult and time-consuming task'."

[ladybirder]

I was told by a publisher once that newspapers have their own rules.

[jno]

that's right, ladybirder, and so do book publishers. Their main concern is consistency; there's no right and wrong with most of these things but they don't want single quotes on one page and double quotes on the next. So each one will have a "house style".

[FredPuli43]

Hooray for the colon in jno's example, which is how The Times , as well as The Guardian,introduces direct quotes: Her mother said:"Let's have tea", and boiled the kettle. (Colons are endangered, but not as much as semi-colons are, and must be protected ) . Put a comma in, if only to indicate a pause in speaking, after the quotation marks. The comma goes inside when the sentence reads: "Let's have tea," said her mother.
Can't think it really matters very much, but that thinking put the colon in peril!

[Kiki-frog]

Save the Colon!

[mrs.chappie]

I'd type "Let's have tea", said her mother. (Closing quotation marks before the comma). Either that or leave the comma out, as in "Let's have tea" said her mother.

I definitely wouldn't put the comma inside the closing quotation marks as it looks strange that way (at least it does to me). :o/

Failing that, I'd just type: Her mother suggested we have tea and boiled the kettle. :o)

[wildwood]

From commas to colons! Are we ever 100% right when it comes to dotting the Is? It seems that popular usage slowly changes official English, and lexicologists have a free hand, as dictionaries are often quoted as proof of authenticity.

Never mind the bloody tea now..... I'll have a pint instead!

[JonnyBoy12]

Yes, the first version and mike is the right one.

[kloofnek]

The correct English way: Her mother said,"Let`s have tea" and boiled the kettle.
Inverted commas denotes direct speech.

[FoxLee2]

I think she should have boiled the water rather than the kettle!