scare quotes
scare quotes
plural noun
a pair of quotation marks used around a term or phrase to indicate that the writer does not think it is being used appropriately or that the writer is using it in a specialized sense: a “huge breakthrough” in the negotiations. Compare air quotes.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To scare quotes
Collins
World English Dictionary
| scare quotes | |
| —pl n | |
| quotation marks placed around a word or phrase to indicate that it should not be taken literally or automatically accepted as true | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
00:10
Scare quotes
is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
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