Grammar

Question 1

Inverted commas can be single – ‘x’ – or double – “x”. They are also known as ** ? (3)

Answer 1

quotation marks, speech marks, or quotes.

Question 2

Inverted commas are mainly used in the following cases:

Answer 2

to mark the beginning and end of direct speech (i.e., a speaker’s words written down exactly as they were spoken).
‘That,’ he said, ‘is nonsense.’

Question 3

What’s the rule difference for inverted commas between American English & British English?

Answer 3

In American English, the rule is to use double quotation marks:

“What time will he arrive?” she asked.

In British English, quotation marks are called inverted commas, and the single ones are used more frequently than the double for direct speech.

Question 4

Direct speech within direct speech rules for American English & British English?

Answer 4

the rule in American English is to use double quotation marks for direct speech. The exception is when a piece of direct speech is quoted within another piece of direct speech, in which case the internal quote should use single quotation marks. For example:

Professor Flynn began with, “Even if you’ve never read a word of Shakespeare, I’m sure you’ve heard ‘To be or not to be’ a thousand times.”

As odd as it may look to American readers, it is perfectly correct in British writing to use single quotation marks for direct speech and double quotation marks to enclose quoted material within. For example:

She still sounds amazed when she says: ‘We were turned down because “we represented too small a minority of the population”. They could still get away with saying things like that then.’

RE: i.e. the rule is flipped to the opposite between American & British English.