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Inside or Outside the Quotation Marks? is a free printable Grade 5 English worksheet on where each punctuation mark goes around a quotation in US style, aligned to Common Core standard L.5.2. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Inside or Outside the Quotation Marks?

L.5.2

NameDate

Circle the right answer.

1."Stop" yelled Jo — Jo's word is shouted. Where does the exclamation point go?
  • A.Outside the closing quotation mark
  • B.Inside the closing quotation mark
  • C.At the very end, after Jo
2.The words "Look out" are followed by "shouted Sam" and the sentence ends. What goes after Sam?
  • A.A comma
  • B.An exclamation point
  • C.A period
3.In "After lunch," said Mrs. Park, "we will start," why does we begin with a small letter?
  • A.It is not a name
  • B.The second part carries on the same sentence
  • C.Quotations never begin with a capital
4.In Lena whispered, "The baby is asleep," which mark comes straight after whispered?
  • A.A period
  • B.A comma
  • C.No mark at all
5.Kai said that his mom told him to "wait here." Kai is quoted saying his mom's words. In US style, what goes around a quotation inside a quotation?
  • A.Single quotation marks
  • B.Parentheses
  • C.Double quotation marks
6.In US style, where do a comma and a period go when they meet a closing quotation mark?
  • A.Always outside it
  • B.Always inside it
  • C.Inside only if the quotation is a question
7.Mia said, "The bus is here" — the sentence ends after here. Where does the period go?
  • A.Outside the closing quotation mark
  • B.After the word said
  • C.Inside the closing quotation mark
8.Dad said "soon"; we waited an hour. Where does the semicolon go?
  • A.Inside the closing quotation mark
  • B.Outside the closing quotation mark
  • C.Before the word soon

LessonPrint · L.5.2 · Set 19 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Inside or Outside the Quotation Marks?

Set 19. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Inside the closing quotation mark
  2. 2.A period
  3. 3.The second part carries on the same sentence
  4. 4.A comma
  5. 5.Single quotation marks
  6. 6.Always inside it
  7. 7.Inside the closing quotation mark
  8. 8.Outside the closing quotation mark

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to L.5.2 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.