“Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” —Henry James
The quote above may be from a British writer, but because I’m writing this blog post in American English, I’ve used double quotation marks to enclose it.
Some people think using single or double quotation marks is an aesthetic choice. But it’s not—the choice of whether to use single or double quotation marks comes down to the style of English you’re using.
American (and Canadian) English uses double quotation marks to enclose quoted material and uses single quotation marks for a quotation within a quotation. The sixteenth edition of The Chicago Manual of Style says, “Quoted words, phrases, and sentences run into the text are enclosed in double quotation marks. Single quotation marks enclose quotations within quotations . . .” (13.28).
Example:
“She said, ‘Wow! It’s a sunny day,’ and I was surprised.”
British English (and Australian English) does the reverse. It uses single quotation marks to enclose quoted material and double quotation marks for a quotation within a quotation. (And, in British English, quotation marks are called “inverted commas.”)
Example:
‘She said, “Wow! It’s a sunny day,” and I was surprised.’
Double quotation marks are standard in American English. The style of quotation marks you use should follow the style of English in which you are writing. Consistency is always important. So if you’re writing in American English, use double quotation marks.
