{"id":10789,"date":"2015-08-03T12:01:54","date_gmt":"2015-08-03T10:01:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scribbr.com\/?p=10789"},"modified":"2023-07-23T15:30:03","modified_gmt":"2023-07-23T13:30:03","slug":"language-mistakes-in-quotes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scribbr.com\/academic-writing\/language-mistakes-in-quotes\/","title":{"rendered":"Language mistakes in quotes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Quotation marks are used to show that a quoted<\/a> text is verbatim. But what should you do if that text contains a language mistake?<\/p>\n

Students have traditionally been told to leave the mistake as it is, but to add [sic<\/em>] after whatever is incorrect. Using [sic<\/em>] indicates that this mistake was made in the source material, and not by you.<\/p>\n

Example:<\/h6>\n
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Digital Media\u2019s employee handbook (2014) states that \u201call team members who pass their annual performance review will be given a twelth-month [sic<\/em>] bonus.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Thysson and Wu (2009), \u201cDali\u2019s staying power is undeniable; he\u2019s an artist who\u2019s [sic<\/em>] popularity has only increased with time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Twelth<\/u><\/strong> should be twelfth<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Who\u2019s<\/u><\/strong> should be whose.<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

This approach is correct when quoting in APA Style<\/a>. However, other sources (including The Chicago Manual of Style<\/em>) say it is acceptable to correct minor spelling mistakes and typos such as those above. This is because doing so is less disruptive for the reader. When the mistake reveals something important about the quotation<\/a> or the person being quoted, however, it\u2019s best not to fix it.<\/p>\n

Example:<\/h6>\n
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During the interview, Abadi expressed his disdain of social media: \u201cI think this Tweeter [sic<\/em>] nonsense is a complete waste of time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Leaving Tweeter<\/u><\/strong> instead of changing it to Twitter<\/u><\/strong> tells us even more about Abadi\u2019s position on the matter.<\/p>\n

You should also not change anything that you are uncertain about.<\/p>\n

Example:<\/h6>\n
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Ana Figueres (2013) argues that \u201cscalpel safaris are destined to become a major source of foreign revenue in south Africa [sic<\/em>].\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

It seems logical that the author meant the country of South Africa<\/u><\/strong>, but she may also have meant the region.<\/p>\n

Your Scribbr editor<\/a> will call your attention to language mistakes found in quotations within your paper. You can then decide whether you want to stick to the formal APA guidelines<\/a> and use [sic<\/em>] or simply make a correction. Since it is very easy to make small mistakes when re-typing quotations, your first step should always be to double-check your source material!<\/p>\n

Other interesting articles<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you want to know more about AI for academic writing, AI tools, or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!<\/p>\n

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<\/em>Fallacies<\/strong><\/p>\n