In writing, punctuation is very important. Knowing where to put a comma or an apostrophe can make a big difference to the meaning of a sentence.

There is nothing funnier or more embarrassing than when you put a punctuation mark in the wrong place, and the meaning you intended turns into something else.

One punctuation mark that is often used incorrectly is the quotation mark.

Most people don't think quotation marks are relevant, so when they use them, they don't pay much attention to them and make mistakes.

Most of the time, the wrong way to use quotation marks makes the difference between a harmless comment and something very offensive. Just take a look at this example below:

• 'She' was filled with excitement.
• She was 'filled' with excitement.
• She was filled with 'excitement'.

See? The meanings of the three sentences couldn't be more different from one another!

Many of these cringe-worthy quotation mark mistakes are shared on social media by people from all over the world, and Bored Panda collects them. And now we're sharing them with you! These pictures show that quotation marks can be confusing, scary, and even funny. Members, we hope these make you laugh!

Credit: Bored Panda.​

The sign outside this church claimed that there was a free trip to 'heaven' and that more information could be found 'inside'. Totally not creepy at all!

Oh, and there's also a community feeding going on inside. Could it be that the dishes are so delicious that they will send you straight to heaven?

Credit: Bored Panda.​

When they saw this sign for COVID-19 testing, some people were suspicious about whether or not the results given at the facility would be completely accurate.

We bet they also have a 'cure' for COVID-19 in there, huh?

Credit: Bored Panda.​

A wooden ornament emphasises that this family's home is a 'happy' one, and it can be found sitting on top of their washing machine in the laundry room.

This is one of the most interesting and unusual pieces of home decoration we've ever seen!

Credit: Bored Panda.​

To be completely honest, neither we nor the horses think that fence is electric…

Credit: Bored Panda.​

Well, that message sounds like it was written with a great deal of heart and sincerity, doesn't it? It even helps that the words 'so' and 'never' are in quotes and that they are also capitalised. Oh, poor Pete…

Credit: Bored Panda.​

Does this sign mean that there was something or someone else, other than an animal, who needed to be cleaned up after around the area? Maybe someone is keeping something else as a pet?

Now we're curious about what kind of park this is… any idea, folks?

Credit: Bored Panda.​

The fact that a hotel placed this sign there... If this isn't the biggest warning sign there could possibly be, then we don't know what is! Aside from that, the word 'currently' is what raised our eyebrows the most. Do you mean to tell us that number was not zero before?

Credit: Bored Panda.​

Another hotel that doesn't know how to use quote marks properly… What kind of 'maid service' are they even talking about here? We can only hope that it's the kind that involves tidying up and organising!

Credit: Bored Panda.​

What was Frank and Mary's relationship like, then, if he wasn't her 'husband'? Does Frank even realise that he is not the 'husband' of the woman he is married to? Or perhaps they are just actors playing their parts... Guess we will never know.

Credit: Bored Panda.​

We're pretty sure that putting your hands together is NOT what you're supposed to do in this situation. Actually, it will only make matters worse…

We sincerely hope that some of these pictures made you laugh out loud! With everything going on in the world right now, we all need to laugh and have fun with our friends and neighbours to get through each day.

If you have more photos showing people misusing the quotation marks, please don't be shy and share them with us in the comments section. We would love to add them to our ever-growing collection!

 

[Suzanne rose]

I don't use 'quotation ' marks . People would use then to emphasise that word if I want to emphasise something I right it in CAPITALS then again some would say that's angry .

 

[Chris Churchill]

Appropriate (and correct) punctuation marks are a basic component of the English language and the lack thereof is indicitave of a poor education!
The replies on this website are rife with the problem, and Tasmania is even worse. The problem being that NOT every word ending in "s" is preceded by an apostrophe!
One of my local butchers has a sign upon which I have grown tired of scratching off the error!
I am still puzzled how anyone can "chime" a response!
Please enlighten me.

 

[Chris Churchill]

I don't use 'quotation ' marks . People would use then to emphasise that word if I want to emphasise something I right it in CAPITALS then again some would say that's angry .

But you just have!
And I think you mean write, NOT right!

 

[Thecheesequeen]

I don't use 'quotation ' marks . People would use then to emphasise that word if I want to emphasise something I right it in CAPITALS then again some would say that's angry .

I think you mean write it in capitals.

 

[Thecheesequeen]

Punctuation- indeed, basic grammar - is not taught properly in schools any more. Is there anyone under the age of 60 who could parse a sentence nowadays?

 

[RTS]

Spelling and grammar aren't as important as letting people communicate without being ridiculed. Not everyone received an excellent, or even a good, basic education.
Word pronunciation often depends on acuteness of hearing. For someone who's slightly deaf the subtle distinctions are lost.
Until the age of the internet many people didn't read or write much in their everyday lives.
Avaricious readers have no trouble recognising spelling and grammar mistakes, but they are more likely to neglect other areas of their lives. The pleasure of a showroom clean home with sparkling windows will probably never be theirs.
I speak from sad experience.

 

[Ricci]

I don't use 'quotation ' marks . People would use then to emphasise that word if I want to emphasise something I right it in CAPITALS then again some would say that's angry .

Um, I think you mean write!

 

[Ricci]

Whilst to some people correct spelling and punctuation are everything (including apparently a superior education) the idea of writing is to convey a message, thought or idea. Stop and ask yourself if you understood the passage, if you did then it's mission complete! While I pride myself in having a wide grasp of the English language I put it down to a voracious appetite for reading and not to the level of my education.

 

[Evol P]

Most of those quotation marks are not required.
They are supposed to be used to indicate a quote.
Like she said "I don't use quotation marks, unless its a quotation"

 

[Evol P]

Punctuation- indeed, basic grammar - is not taught properly in schools any more. Is there anyone under the age of 60 who could parse a sentence nowadays?

No. What's parsing? I know because I am 73.

 

[Suzanne rose]

Whilst to some people correct spelling and punctuation are everything (including apparently a superior education) the idea of writing is to convey a message, thought or idea. Stop and ask yourself if you understood the passage, if you did then it's mission complete! While I pride myself in having a wide grasp of the English language I put it down to a voracious appetite for reading and not to the level of my education.

I said similar to my husband last night, at night I either read my on my kindle or play word fames on my phone. I gate how my phone writes what it wants though

 

[Thecheesequeen]

No. What's parsing? I know because I am 73.

 

[Thecheesequeen]

Parsing is dividing a sentence into its component parts (either individual words or, alternatively, phrases), identifying the parts and their relationship to the rest of the words or sentence. It might seem pedantic and unnecessary, but it gives a solid base for fully understanding our wonderful language.

 

[Thecheesequeen]

Spelling and grammar aren't as important as letting people communicate without being ridiculed. Not everyone received an excellent, or even a good, basic education.
Word pronunciation often depends on acuteness of hearing. For someone who's slightly deaf the subtle distinctions are lost.
Until the age of the internet many people didn't read or write much in their everyday lives.
Avaricious readers have no trouble recognising spelling and grammar mistakes, but they are more likely to neglect other areas of their lives. The pleasure of a showroom clean home with sparkling windows will probably never be theirs.
I speak from sad experience.

“Until the age of the Internet many people didn’t read of write much in their daily lives.” WHAT?? I would say that until the age of the Internet most people read and wrote multiple times a day. Books, newspapers, letters, cards, shopping lists, notes . . . the list goes on. And please don’t tell me that I, as an avaricious reader, neglect other areas of my life! My home might not be SHOWROOM clean (thank goodness) with sparkling windows, but it’s certainly clean and healthy and happy!

 

[Esma Rose]

I love you CheeseQueen. You hit the nail on the head. Reading is a necessity. If I see wrong spelling I simply cannot cope with it. As a kid my teacher was a drilling artist when it came to spelling. Now @ almost 97 a wrong word spelling hits me head on, & most of the words are on television News. It is the way we were taught. Later, scholars had to take short cuts @ University for quick notes, not to forget shorthand, then the magic phone we have now. Such is progress. Many children today are what I call lazy speakers. They are the results of the English teachers who are not like the ones of old. Parsing, the pronunciation of words, correctly addressing people in their business category & addressing envelopes to dignitaries were all a part of correct English. How many today off the top of their head would know how to write correctly to Our Queen? I have a dictionary that is so informative, not only for spelling words but for so much more information. We said to our children, "If you get tired of learning & spelling words, go to the front of our dictionary." I think the confusing area of learning words is the spelling of English to American. Many Japanese have been taught by Americans & I dare not tell you how hopelessly mixed up they have become over the years. One scholar we cared for in our home came here to sit for an English Exam. He brought home the papers for us to see. I kid you not they were so difficult that even I would not have passed. Our son who was a teacher saw the paper also & questioned the difficulty. How times are changing daily. To hear English from a speaker who enunciates every word correctly is music to my ears. Why? Because my youth was a nightmare. I was the worst stutterer. I could not put two words together. I longed with all my heart to just simply speak. That is another story how the teacher came down on my knuckles with a round ruler because I was left-handed as well. I felt a misfit to say the least, & an embarrassment to my dad for a long time. My mum was an angel.

 

[Thecheesequeen]

I love you CheeseQueen. You hit the nail on the head. Reading is a necessity. If I see wrong spelling I simply cannot cope with it. As a kid my teacher was a drilling artist when it came to spelling. Now @ almost 97 a wrong word spelling hits me head on, & most of the words are on television News. It is the way we were taught. Later, scholars had to take short cuts @ University for quick notes, not to forget shorthand, then the magic phone we have now. Such is progress. Many children today are what I call lazy speakers. They are the results of the English teachers who are not like the ones of old. Parsing, the pronunciation of words, correctly addressing people in their business category & addressing envelopes to dignitaries were all a part of correct English. How many today off the top of their head would know how to write correctly to Our Queen? I have a dictionary that is so informative, not only for spelling words but for so much more information. We said to our children, "If you get tired of learning & spelling words, go to the front of our dictionary." I think the confusing area of learning words is the spelling of English to American. Many Japanese have been taught by Americans & I dare not tell you how hopelessly mixed up they have become over the years. One scholar we cared for in our home came here to sit for an English Exam. He brought home the papers for us to see. I kid you not they were so difficult that even I would not have passed. Our son who was a teacher saw the paper also & questioned the difficulty. How times are changing daily. To hear English from a speaker who enunciates every word correctly is music to my ears. Why? Because my youth was a nightmare. I was the worst stutterer. I could not put two words together. I longed with all my heart to just simply speak. That is another story how the teacher came down on my knuckles with a round ruler because I was left-handed as well. I felt a misfit to say the least, & an embarrassment to my dad for a long time. My mum was an angel.

 

[Thecheesequeen]

How wonderful that you overcame those early difficulties, Esma Rose, and came to appreciate our language.