QUOTATION MARKS
Place punctuation inside the quotation marks , unless the quotation marks are being used to refer to a specific word or phrase .
• The man asked , " Will they arrive soon ?"
• The secret password is " Vancouver "; she thought it was " Victoria ".
• Should I capitalize " banana " in this sentence ?
Do not use quotation marks for emphasis ( sarcastic or otherwise ).
• Incorrect : She told me I was the " best " friend she had ever had .
• Correct : She told me I was the best friend she had ever had .
Use single quotation marks for quotes within quotes .
• " He said , ' I guess they ' re not coming ,' then packed up his gear ," Dmitri reported .
TELEPHONE NUMBERS
Phone numbers should always include an area code and be formatted using hyphens , rather than parentheses .
• Incorrect : ( 321 ) 632-1111
• Incorrect : 632-1111
• Correct : 321-632-1111
Extensions should be noted as follows :
• His phone number is 321-433-1111 ext . 3456 .
TITLES
COMPOSITIONS
Capitalize the principal words within a composition title including prepositions and conjunctions of four or more letters . If you ' re not sure , use this title capitalization tool as a reference .
Indefinite and definite articles are only capitalized if they are the first word within a title .
• Incorrect : I read " The New York Times " every morning .
• Correct : I read the New York Times every morning .
Put quotation marks around the titles of all compositions except religious books , reference materials ( such as dictionaries or encyclopedias ), newspapers , magazines , software programs , and websites .
• Have you seen the TV show " Supernatural ?"
• " Forrest Gump " was released in 1994 .
• The Beatles made several albums including " Abbey Road " and " Rubber Soul ."
• I picked up a copy of the Bible .
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