We’ve probably all witnessed the havoc a misplaced comma can wreak on an innocent sentence. “Let’s eat, Grandma” and “Let’s eat Grandma” are one small mark apart, but only one of them sounds like a line from Hannibal Lecter.
But there’s another punctuation mishap we see all the time, on signs, menus, storefronts, packaging, you name it: the misuse of quotation marks. Somewhere along the way, people decided these little curls were a handy way to add emphasis. The problem? They do draw attention to the words inside them, but not in the way anyone intended. A bar advertising “happy” hour suddenly sounds a lot more depressing, while a deli promising “fresh” sandwiches has us thinking twice about ordering. There are plenty more where those came from, so keep scrolling.
