Grammar Tips. Quotation marks.

General rule:

A comma or a period is always placed inside [American English only] the quotation marks.

INCORRECT: His knowledge of Spanish is limited to adios, “goodbye”, and gracias, “thank you”.

CORRECT: His knowledge of Spanish is limited to adios, “goodbye,” and gracias, “thank you.”

Here are some examples that demonstrate the placement of commas and periods inside quotation marks:

1. She said, "I'll be there in five minutes."

2. "I love chocolate," he declared with a smile.

3. The teacher asked, "Can you please pass me the book?"

4. "Where did you put the car keys?" he asked anxiously.

5. "I can't believe it," she whispered to herself.

6. He exclaimed, "I won the lottery!"

7. The sign read, "No entry after 10 p.m."

8. "Please turn off the lights," the mother reminded her children.

9. She sighed and said, "I need a vacation."

10. He asked, "Did you finish your homework?"

In all of these examples, the commas and periods are placed inside the quotation marks, following the standard punctuation rules in English.