Irony Punctuation - Scare Quotes

Scare Quotes

Scare quotes are a particular use of quotation marks. They are placed around a word or phrase to indicate that it is not used in the fashion that the writer would personally use it. In contrast to the nominal typographic purpose of quotation marks, the enclosed words are not necessarily quoted from another source. When read aloud, various techniques are used to convey the sense, such as prepending the addition of "so-called" or a similar word or phrase of disdain, using a sarcastic or mocking tone, or using air quotes, or any combination of the above.

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Famous quotes containing the words scare and/or quotes:

    I scare him to death, I don’t have to kill him to death.
    —Willis Cooper. Rowland V. Lee. Ygor (Bela Lugosi)

    Man is timid and apologetic; he is no longer upright; he dares not say “I think,” “I am,” but quotes some saint or sage.
    Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)