13.5 Basics of Using Quotations

Direct quotations are portions of a text taken word-for-word and placed inside of another document. Readers know when an author is using a direct quote because it is denoted by using quotation marks and an in-text citation. In this section, you will learn when to use direct quotes and the rules for direct quotation.

When Should I Use Direct Quotes?

Direct quotes should be used sparingly because you want to rely on your own understanding of material and avoid over-relying on others’ words. Over-quoting does not reinforce your credibility as an author. According to the Purdue Online Writing Lab (Purdue Writing Online Lab, 2025) you should use direct quotes when “the author you are quoting has coined a term unique to her or his research and relevant within your own paper.” In other words, quoting is particularly important when you’re defining and contextualizing key terms and concepts in your text.

While quoting may be the first step that many people think of when they think about integrating sources, paraphrasing, summarizing, and referencing data are also ways to incorporate information from outside materials into your essays or projects.

NOTE: UTA students may refer to UTA Libraries quick guide to citations including using quotes and block quotes.

This section is derived from Using Sources in Your Document in Howdy or Hello? Technical and Professional Communication Copyright © 2022 by Matt McKinney, Kalani Pattison, Sarah LeMire, Kathy Anders, and Nicole Hagstrom-Schmidt is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.