15.5: Using Quotes and Signal Phrases

The difference between quotes and paraphrases

When you paraphrase, you reorganize the author's ideas and use fresh words and phrases to convey the ideas from your source. But when you quote, you use the author's exact words. To show that you are using the author's exact words, you need to credit the source and put full quotation marks around the quoted material.

When/Why to use quotes

In a college paper, you generally do not want quotes to comprise more than 20% of the content in any given paper. This means that you should use quotes sparingly and do your best to put source information in your own words while still giving credit to the source for their ideas. A skillfully constructed paper will include summaries, paraphrases and quotes.

Consider quoting in the following circumstances:

1. When the source uses technical language that is difficult to convey,
2. When the source is particularly vivid or descriptive,
3. When the source is so concise and well worded that it cannot be revised without making the passage wordy.
4. When you are using a source with which you disagree and you want to represent the opposing viewpoint in your paper.

Using Signal Phrases to Introduce Quotes Skillfully

You want to explain every quote that you use in the paper, but you also want to introduce each quote in your paper. To introduce a quote, use a signal phrase that leads into the quote with context or source information. This might combine some source introduction or summary, but think of a signal phrase as a source integration tool: it helps you use source information effectively and also helps you give clear credit to the author to avoid plagiarism.

Formatting Signal phrases: There are three ways to execute and punctuate a signal phrase.

1) Use a comma when the signal phrase ends on a verb.

Helen Keller concludes, "Everything had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought" (93).

2) Use a colon when a signal phrase is an independent clause (a complete sentence).

Helen Keller concludes by detailing the lesson she learned from her experience: "Everything had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought" (93).

3) Forego punctuation when the quote merges or flows into the language of the signal phrase.

Through acquiring language, Keller came to learn that all the objects in this mysterious world "had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought" (93).

Explicating Sources

As well as properly citing sources, you need to integrate them well. This means both introducing quotes with signal phrases and explicating quotations and paraphrases. You do not need to explicate summary, since you are giving a broad overview and don’t have to explain it in detail. In addition to properly introducing and documenting sources, writers need to explicate quotations and paraphrases.

Explicating sources means justifying their place in your work. A good guideline to follow for explicating source material (in the form of quotations and paraphrases) is for every sentence of quotation or paraphrase that you use, follow it with three sentences of explication.

Steps to quoting

First, when taking notes to write a paper, make sure your notes accurately reflect the content of the original text: check that quoted material is copied verbatim and the author's name is spelled correctly. If you omit words from a quotation, use ellipses to show the omission, and make sure the omission does not change the author’s meaning. If you add your own responses and ideas to your notes, mark them as such so that your own thinking about the topic stands out from ideas you summarized or paraphrased.

Generally, when quoting, follow these steps:

1. Select the quote and type it accurately into your Word doc or copy it into your notes, being sure to get the language completely correct and you have retained the author’s formatting.
2. Construct a signal phrase to introduce the quote. Consider including the author's name in the signal phrase.
3. Place a parenthetical at the end of the note including the page number or paragraph number of the quote. If the author's name is not in the signal phrase, place it in the parenthetical citation.
4. If you need to edit the quote, be sure to show this through use of ellipses and brackets. If you need to insert a word, do so in brackets; if you need to omit a word, phrase, or even a sentence from the quote, use ellipses to show the omission.
5. Check the typed quote back against the original to be sure you copied it exactly and have supplied the correct page number as well as correctly spelling the author's name.
6. Explicate the quote for at least as long at the quote itself takes up.
7. Be sure you document the source you quoted on the Works Cited page.

See this page for more help with quotations from the writing center at UNC Chapel Hill.

Signal Verbs

Introducing Cited Material Effectively Including a signal phrase in your text, such as “Jackson writes” or “Copeland finds,” often helps you integrate source material smoothly. This citation technique also helps convey that you are actively engaged with your source material. Unfortunately, during the process of writing your research paper, it is easy to fall into a rut and use the same few dull verbs repeatedly, such as “Jones says,” “Smith states,” and so on. Punch up your writing by using strong verbs that help your reader understand how the source material presents ideas.

There is a world of difference between an author who “suggests” and one who “claims,” one who “questions” and one who “criticizes.” You do not need to consult your thesaurus every time you cite a source but do think about which verbs will accurately represent the ideas and make your writing more engaging. The following list includes some possibilities:

argues asks asserts assesses believes claims compares concludes

contrasts determines evaluates explains finds hypothesizes insists measures

points out proposes questions recommends studies suggests sums up

Generally, avoid the signal verbs "talks" and "says" unless you are referring to a speech or information that was relayed verbally. Remember, you want to keep your signal verbs accurate, and it is always best to pick signal verbs that show the tone or purpose of the text.

Pro-Tip Always keep MLA signal verbs in the present tense. Even if the piece was written over a century ago (like Douglass' story, for example), the text still exists, and any moment, you can open the story and Douglass is still arguing and describing. Hence, were we to use a signal verb for his story, we would pick a verb such as "writes" or "argues" and not "written" or "argued."

How to avoid over quoting

Be sure to address each quote for at least as long as the quote takes up in the paper. In other words, if a quote takes up two sentences, you should explain, disagree with, analyze, or agree with the quote for two sentences. If you don't have two sentences to say about the quote, reconsider if it is important enough to put in your paper, or if you should consider paraphrasing it instead.

Sentences of explication might involve the following information:

• “In other words”: Tell your readers what the quote or paraphrase means.
• Analyze the quote; break it down and explain what the parts mean.
• Tell why the quote is important to your point or what it means to your thesis. This kind of explication might begin with something like "This point is important because..."
• Agree or disagree with the quote: Tell the reader why it is incorrect or correct. This kind of explication might begin with something like "This is a valid point because..." or "This conclusion is unfounded because..."
• How it supports your argument: Tell your readers how this quote or paraphrase is evidence that supports your argument.
• Context: Provide some context for this quote or paraphrase--where in the text did it come from--the beginning, middle, or end? What is the author of the source doing or trying to do in this section or passage?

To avoid over quoting, you also want to avoid long quotes. In a four-page paper, for example, you should only use one block quote if any. If you find yourself wanting to use long quotes, try to paraphrase parts of them or see if you can cut the quote down to a more manageable size by using ellipses to cut out unnecessary details.

See this page from the Writing Commons for help using quotations and paraphrases together to fully discuss a source.