Quotation marks appear with other punctuation marks.

    • Commas and periods go inside the closing quotation mark.
    • Colons, semicolons, and ellipsis go outside closing quotation marks.

When should I use double quotation marks?

    • When referring to a letter, phrase, or sentence as a linguistic

Letter “b”

The singular “they”

Instead of writing “the disabled child,” you may write “the child with down syndrome”

    • For stimulus

The stimulus words were “house,” “child,” and “dog.

    • To reproduce verbatim instructions or material from a test

The first instruction was “examine the content carefully”

The second question is “Should people be allowed smoke in public places?”

    • To introduce ironic comments, slang, or labels for the first time—do not do it the second time.
First Time Second Time
The “healthy” dog did not bark Then the normal dog dropped dead on the floor.
His passport had the label “newcomer” the newcomer label meant that…
    • When a title of a periodical article or book chapter is used in the text or in a copyright attribution.

In text: Silva (2021) article, “Digital Marketing Plan for the Company Investments Olda, Venezuela” explains the…

In a copyright attribution: Adapted from: “Digital Marketing Plan for the Company Investments Olda, Venezuela”Silva, R. (2021). Revista Orbis, 17(49), 5–19. Copyright 2021 by Orbis Magazine.

When not to use them?

    • To highlight a term for which you will provide a definition (use italics).
    • When referring to numerals

The numeral 10 is very common in the list.

    • To hedge or downplay meaning

Correct: Students embraced commitment.
Incorrect: Students “embraced “commitment.

(Adapted from APA, 2020, p. 157-159)

Source 

The American Psychological Association. (2020).  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association 7th edition.