Colon Always Goes Outside Quotation Marks
The Colon
Rulebase Summary
When a colon and a closing quotation mark appear at the same point in a sentence, the colon always goes outside (after) the closing quotation mark. Like the semicolon, the colon is never placed inside quotation marks.
Morson's Rule 38 · p.25 BGGP Quotes.22 · p.119 Morson's Rule 107 · p.63
Examples
✗
A. He used the word "urgent:"
he meant the filing deadline was the next day.
✓
A. He used the word "urgent": he meant the filing deadline was the next day.
Colon goes outside the closing quotation mark.
✗
A. She described it as "critical:"
the patient required immediate surgery.
✓
A. She described it as "critical": the patient required immediate surgery.
Like semicolons, colons are never placed inside quotes.
Style Guide References (3)
Morson's
Rule 38
Page 25
BGGP
Quotes.22
Page 119
Morson's
Rule 107
Page 63