If you are writing for a publication that demands the use of APA style, follow these simple guidelines to using punctuation in and around quotation marks.
| Punctuation mark | Place inside or outside closing quotation mark? | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Period (full stop) | Inside | A and B thought the theory of everything was “informative” and “essential.” |
| Comma | Inside | C and D stated that the theory of everything was “informative,” “essential” and “persuasive.” |
| Parentheses | Outside | E (2016) argued that “Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit” (p. 101). |
| Semi colon | Outside | The first participants described the process as “Duis rhoncus dictum lacus in pretium”; the second participants described the process as “Nullam ultrices augue quis varius egesta.” |
| Colon | Outside | Mr. Smith said he was “excited”: this was expected. |
| Question mark (part of quote) | Inside | The question posed was “How do you rate the theory of everything on a scale from one to ten?” |
| Question mark (not part of quote) | Outside | Why is it important to know why Mr. Smith said “Fusce finibus nisi sit amet convallis aucto”? |
| Quotation within quotation – with period or comma | Inside | Mr. Smith said “I don’t believe in the ‘theory of everything.'” |
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