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Help:Quotes
Quotations can be included in articles by using a quote template.
A warning: If you're using a quote from one of the many quote farms on the internet, there's a good chance that site is wrong about the exact wording and/or misattributing the quote to the wrong person. These sites are not authoritative. You should use a citation from a reputable source instead. Don't be lazy, add a citation for each quote that you add — it's less likely to be deleted by someone else.
Examples of reputable sources for quotations:
- A book or article written by the quoted person themself
- A contemporaneous quote in a news media source that adheres to journalistic standards
- A book of quotations published by a major publisher — preferably one that uses citations for the original sources
- Quote Investigator
- Wikiquote — if a source of the quote is given
Examples of bad sources for quotations that should never be used:
- Memes
- Goodreads
- Brainyquote
- Other quote aggregators
These sources prioritize clickbait, not accuracy.
Quotebox[edit]
Quotebox is the simplest to use. It simply encloses the words in a coloured box:
{{Quotebox|the quote}} produces:
the quote
Using html 'center' (note US spelling) tags, {{Quotebox|<center>the quote</center>}} produces:
the quote
And with wikiformatting:
{{Quotebox|<center>''the quote''</center>}} produces:
the quote
If this is part of a conversation, then {{Quotebox|reply quote|reply=1}} produces
reply quote
There are currently 7 colors to choose from!
Quotebox2[edit]
Similar to {{quotebox}}, but with more customization allowed. You can change the width, alignment, etc.
| Albert Einstein was born at Ulm, in Württemberg, Germany, on March 14, 1879. — Nobelprize.org |
q[edit]
q (or Q) puts the quote in italics & normal quotation marks. The source can be added.
{{q|quotation goes here|source}} produces:
quotation goes here
- source
Note that the source is formatted as a wikilink, so if it doesn't exist, it will be red.
Quote[edit]
Also basically {{q}}.
UQ[edit]
Just like {{q}}, but with this odd effect
Cquote[edit]
Cquote separates the quotation from the bulk of the article by using graphic quotation marks. {{cquote}} is for short quotes, not to be used for long blocks of quotation. Use {{quotebox}} or {{longquote}} for long quotes.
{{Cquote|Whatever you want to quote goes here}} produces:
“”Whatever you want to quote goes here
|
Cquote has other parameters: width & height of the actual quotation mark images (default = 20px).
{{Cquote|Whatever you want to quote goes here|40px|40px}} produces:
“”Whatever you want to quote goes here
|
Name of the person that wrote or spoke the text being quoted. Can include links.
{{Cquote|Whatever you want to quote goes here|20px|20px|Human}} produces:
“”Whatever you want to quote goes here
|
| —Human |
{{Cquote|Whatever you want to quote goes here|20px|20px|[[User:Human|Human]]}} produces:
“”Whatever you want to quote goes here
|
| —Human |
Source of the quote (publication title, speech, etc.). Can include links.
{{Cquote|Whatever you want to quote goes here|||[[User:Human|Human]]|[[User Talk:Human|His talk page]]}} produces:
“”Whatever you want to quote goes here
|
| —Human, His talk page |
Note: The first parameter (the actual quote) is required — others may be omitted, but if a later one is included, then the pipe symbols (|) for previous ones must be present. So in order to make a quote with a byline only, use this syntax: {{cquote|some brilliant non sequitur|||some obscure sequiturist}} — you can see the two extra "pipes" that would be where the "quote mark size" parameters would be. Or you can use the ordinals of the parameters:
{{Cquote|Whatever you want to quote goes here|4=[[User:Human|Human]]|5=[[User Talk:Human|His talk page]]}} produces:
“”Whatever you want to quote goes here
|
| —Human, His talk page |
NB There is a special requirement for quotes including the equals sign (=): the quote wording must be preceded by: "1=" (no quotes).
Ctransquote[edit]
Exactly like {{cquote}}, but for displaying translations of quotes.
Rquote[edit]
Rquote is intended for short quotations that are to one side of the article, with the main text flowing around it. It has four parameters, the first two of which are compulsory. Note that it acts very much like a "thumb"ed image.
- Alignment is the first compulsory parameter. It can have 2 values: right and left. The second compulsory parameter is the actual text of the quotation.
right[edit]
{{Rquote|right|Here's the quoted words on the right.}} produces:
| “ | Here's the quoted words on the right. | ” |
left[edit]
{{Rquote|left|Here's the quoted words on the left. (plus more)}} produces:
| “ | Here's the quoted words on the Left. This sentence has been added to show how it wraps at a fixed width, even though it means very little out of context. | ” |
As with Cquote, the author & source can be included.
{{Rquote|Left|Here's the quoted words on the left.|Susan Garlick|[[User Talk:SusanG|Her talk page]]}} produces:
| “ | Here's the quoted words on the Left. | ” |
—Susan Garlick, Her talk page | ||
Longquote[edit]
A quote template for long quotations that you wish to highlight. It should be restricted to two uses per page, as over-emphasis is ostentatious. Use {{quotebox}} for when {{Longquote}} is too fancy.
{{Longquote|Insert quote here|Insert who said this here.}} produces:
“The wise Sir Bedemir was the first to join King Arthur's knights, but other illustrious names were soon to follow: Sir Lancelot the Brave; Sir Galahad the Pure; and Sir Robin the Not-quite-so-brave-as-Sir-Lancelot who had nearly fought the Dragon of Agnor, who had nearly stood up to the vicious Chicken of Bristol and who had personally wet himself at the Battle of Baden Hill; and the aptly named Sir Not-appearing-in-this-film. Together they formed a band whose names and deeds were to be retold throughout the centuries, the Knights of the Round Table. [...] Defeat at the castle seems to have utterly disheartened King Arthur. The ferocity of the French taunting took him completely by surprise, and Arthur became convinced that a new strategy was required if the quest for the Holy Grail were to be brought to a successful conclusion. Arthur, having consulted his closest knights, decided that they should separate, and search for the Grail individually. Now, this is what they did--
—Narrator, Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Do you have a really long quote?[edit]
Just use <blockquote>Insert really really really long quote here</blockquote> instead of any of the templates. If the quote is really long, the templates will refuse to load the quote.
Example using a quote from Christopher Hitchens:
Some people I know who are atheists will say they wish they could believe it. Some people I know who are former believers say they wish they could have their old faith back; they miss it. I don't understand this at all. I think it's an excellent thing that there's no reason to believe in the absurd propositions I admittedly, rather briefly, rehearsed to you.
The main reason for this, I think, is that it is a totalitarian belief. It is the wish to be a slave.
It is the desire that there be an unalterable, unchallangeable tyrannical authority,
I've been to North Korea. It has a dead man as its president. Kim Jong-il is only the head of the party and head of the army; he's not head of the government or the state. That office belongs to his deceased father, Kim Il-sung. It's a necrocracy, a thanatocracy — it's one short of the Trinity, I might add. The son is the reincarnation of the father. It is the most revolting, and utter, and absolute, and heartless tyranny the human species has ever evolved.
But at LEAST you can fucking DIE and leave North Korea. Does the Qur'an or the Bible offer you that liberty? No! No, the tyranny, the misery, the utter ownership of your entire personality, the smashing of your individuality, only begins at the point of death. This is evil; this is a wicked preachment.