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Quotation marks

gez

gez

pfm Member
Has anybody else found themself falling foul of the "quotation" madness? Over the past 5 years I've found myself doing the written equivalent of the fingers in the air quotation marks motion more and more frequently. Quite often I don't even notice myself doing it, and it's actually rather annoying because when I read the sentence back I wonder why I quoted a given word.

How do I purge myself of this disease?? 😣
 
Not sure what you mean, but if in writing, quotation marks are either for quoting sth (obv.) or for indicating an unusual meaning (or slang, etc.). My dictionary says that it can be double 'apostrophes'; i.e. speech marks as well, but I disagree with that. Speech marks are used for direct speech.

Don't quote me on that though ! :D
 
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Sorry, I had difficulty trying to explain what I meant, and obviously I didn't do it well enough.

What I mean is when one writes something like this:

Yesterday, I was invited to a "party", but I declined to go.

If someone were to say that sentence they may well use their fingers to indicate the quotation marks when saying the word party. What I've found myself doing is doing that in writing but totally inappropriately, i.e. just for random words that in my head I'm emphasising, but that don't actually require emphasising.

Make sense?
 
If you're dependent on quotation marks, it can be dangerous to stop punctuating suddenly. Instead, you should try to reduce the amount by using single inverted commas over a period of weeks. Soon you’ll lose your ‘reliance‘ on apostrophes even in social situations.
 
gez said:
Has anybody else found themself falling foul of the "quotation" madness? Over the past 5 years I've found myself doing the written equivalent of the fingers in the air quotation marks motion more and more frequently. Quite often I don't even notice myself doing it, and it's actually rather annoying because when I read the sentence back I wonder why I quoted a given word.

How do I purge myself of this disease?? 😣
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You mean rabbit ears with your fingers? But written?
 
gez said:
Sorry, I had difficulty trying to explain what I meant, and obviously I didn't do it well enough.

What I mean is when one writes something like this:

Yesterday, I was invited to a "party", but I declined to go.

If someone were to say that sentence they may well use their fingers to indicate the quotation marks when saying the word party. What I've found myself doing is doing that in writing but totally inappropriately, i.e. just for random words that in my head I'm emphasising, but that don't actually require emphasising.

Make sense?
Click to expand...
I don’t understand what you do it for.
What are you trying to add or say about the party by doing it?
 
gez said:
Sorry, I had difficulty trying to explain what I meant, and obviously I didn't do it well enough.

What I mean is when one writes something like this:

Yesterday, I was invited to a "party", but I declined to go.

If someone were to say that sentence they may well use their fingers to indicate the quotation marks when saying the word party. What I've found myself doing is doing that in writing but totally inappropriately, i.e. just for random words that in my head I'm emphasising, but that don't actually require emphasising.

Make sense?
Click to expand...

In the context of what you have written, I would take the meaning to be that the party might not be what might be expected from the term party.
As in, it might be a rubbish party. No balloons, Punch or Pass The Parcel.
Or,
it might be a rubbish Party, with balloons, Punch and Pass The Parcel.
 
Sue Pertwee-Tyr said:
I was, like, invited to this, like party, innit.
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Agreed it could be worse!

It's the use of those written rabbi ears as RJohan puts it that I'm trying to stop. I know there are circumstances, such as the example I gave, where their use makes sense. But I'm finding myself almost using them randomly in text, where it's definitely nonsensical or not appropriate.

I suppose I'll just need to check myself in to a rehab 😣
 
les24preludes said:
You can use various expressions instead during speech. Like I was invited to a so-called party. Or an alleged party. Pretty much the same thing.
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Exactly what you'd use and what I'd thought of prior to reading your post. Quotation marks cannot express the party's dubious aspect but an adjective can. Your second suggestion brings a nasty legalistic tone though ! ;)

There have been a few strange grammar or allied thread recently including a fascinating study on linguistic families and origins ('Indeed') How about discussing conditionals, relative pronouns, modals or phrasal verbs and really get tied up in knots?
 
Mike Reed said:
There have been a few strange grammar or allied thread recently including a fascinating study on linguistic families and origins ('Indeed') How about discussing conditionals, relative pronouns, modals or phrasal verbs and really get tied up in knots?
Click to expand...

Were I to follow that direction I might easily slip into the subjunctive......
 
les24preludes said:
I might easily slip into the subjunctive......
Click to expand...

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