Can you cut a quote short?
James Olson
Updated on April 27, 2026
Considering this, how do you cut out part of a quote?
Shortening a quote
If you want to omit some words, phrases, or sentences from the quote to save space, use an ellipsis (. . .) with a space before and after it to indicate that some material has been left out. If the part you removed includes a sentence break, add a period before the ellipsis to indicate this.
One may also ask, how do you shorten a quote in MLA format? To indicate short quotations (four typed lines or fewer of prose or three lines of verse) in your text, enclose the quotation within double quotation marks.
Considering this, can you split a quote?
(Also Called Divided Quotations)
Quotations are used in writing to tell the reader that someone is speaking. Sometimes a writer needs to interrupt or divide a quotation. In interrupted quotations, the speaker tag comes in the middle of the quotation and in the middle of the sentence.
How do you end a quote early?
Use ellipses to make a quote say something other than what the author originally intended. Include the sentence's ending punctuation followed by the ellipsis points when the dots are inserted after a complete sentence. Leave out the spaces before and after the ellipsis points or between them.
Related Question Answers
How do you skip a sentence in a quote?
Use ellipsis points to show omission within the quotation. Omit any punctuation on either side of the ellipsis, unless the punctuation is necessary to make the shortened quotation grammatically correct.How do you show missing text in a quote?
Three Dots for Missing TextTo show readers that part of a quotation is missing, a writer can use three dots (like this ) to replace the missing words. (These three dots are called an ellipsis.) An ellipsis is usually written or in square brackets [].
Can you replace a word in a quote?
Changes to a quotation not requiring explanationSome changes can be made to direct quotations without alerting readers: The first letter of the first word in a quotation may be changed to an uppercase or a lowercase letter to fit the context of the sentence in which the quotation appears.