• EmoDuck
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    21 hours ago

    Wait, it’s “quote unquote”? I have always been saying “quote on quote” my whole life.

  • JackbyDev@programming.dev
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    22 hours ago

    Because “quote unquote” is done for a laugh typically and “quote unquote” sounds funnier and more pleasing to the ear.

  • lath@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    It’s “quote unquote something” because most people who "quote something often forget to unquote afterwards.

  • shastaxc@lemm.ee
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    1 day ago

    They are just doing the autocomplete verbally, like when you type an opening quote and the end quote goes in automatically but the next thing you type goes inside the quotes

  • andyburke@fedia.io
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    2 days ago

    If you are quoting a word or short phrase you use this form to make it quicker and easier for the listener to understand.

    If you quote a long section, saying “quote, <long quote>, unquote.” is common and accepted.

  • FourPacketsOfPeanuts@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Professors and engineers, in my experience, tend to say “quote… the thing… end quote”. Regular people on the other hand, are lazy, inconsistent and generally oblivious to whether or not they’re being ambiguous.

  • 8000gnat@reddthat.com
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    2 days ago

    this is one of those things that I have wondered about for so long that I forgot to wonder about it

  • The summer blues...
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    2 days ago

    Unrelated but until a month ago I’ve been saying “quote ON quote” until I saw it actually written 😂🤣

  • SzethFriendOfNimi@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    I’ve heard it said both ways.

    For example.

    When the statement you’re quoting is going to be quote, short or simple, unquote.

    Or, if it’s going to stand on its own and be quote, unquote, some long citation that would make famous Russian authors jealous.

    • Incandemon@lemmy.ca
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      2 days ago

      I think I’ve most often heard quote unquote used sarcastically, like scare quotes in writing. When someone’s quoting something seriously I usually hear the quote something unquote or a and I quote something.

  • Redacted@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Tangential, but I don’t understand why in American English you feel the need to say the word quote at all. In UK English we just use intenation.

    • AnarchistArtificer@slrpnk.net
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      1 day ago

      I’m from the UK and I feel like I’ve heard enough UK English speakers saying “quote” that I had never thought of it as an American thing. That isn’t to say that the distinction you make doesn’t exist though, just that it may be variable across demographics or contexts.

    • otp
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      2 days ago

      It’s useful for when you’re quoting someone who happens to use the exact same intonation as you!

  • Altima NEO@lemmy.zip
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    2 days ago

    Because it would be pretty silly to verbally say “quote” “the thing” and them finish of with “unquote” at the end, like some kind of robot.

    The whole point of saying it is to clarify that you’re quoting something.