XL: How to Show Quotation Marks in Function Results and Macros (141578)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
  • Microsoft Excel for Windows 95
  • Microsoft Excel for Windows 95 7.0a
  • Microsoft Excel for Windows 5.0
  • Microsoft Excel for Windows 5.0c
  • Microsoft Excel for the Macintosh 5.0
  • Microsoft Excel for the Macintosh 5.0a
  • Microsoft Excel for Windows NT 5.0
This article was previously published under Q141578

SUMMARY

When you type directly in a cell, you can type quotation marks and they appear in the cell both on the screen and when you print them. However, if you use the CONCATENATE() function or the concatenation operator (&), the quotation marks must be enclosed in quotation marks if you want them to be visible. Similarly, if you want to display a quotation mark in a Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications procedure (for example, if you want a quotation mark to appear in a dialog box), you must precede it with a second instance of a quotation mark.

MORE INFORMATION

Microsoft provides programming examples for illustration only, without warranty either expressed or implied. This includes, but is not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. This article assumes that you are familiar with the programming language that is being demonstrated and with the tools that are used to create and to debug procedures. Microsoft support engineers can help explain the functionality of a particular procedure, but they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality or construct procedures to meet your specific requirements.

Example 1: Displaying Quotation Marks with CONCATENATE() or &

To use the CONCATENATE() function or the concatenation operator (&) to create worksheet formulas that display quotation marks, use the following format: 
   =CONCATENATE("My name is ","""Jane Doe.""")

-or- 

   ="My name is " & """Jane Doe."""
These examples both display the following text string: 
   My name is "Jane Doe."

Example 2: Displaying Quotation Marks in a Text String with a Macro

When you construct a text string in Visual Basic for Applications, you must precede the quotation mark you want to display with a second instance of a quotation mark, as in the following examples: 
   MsgBox "My name is ""Jane Doe."""

-or- 

   ActiveCell.Value = "My name is ""Jane Doe."""
NOTE: The outermost set of quotation marks is required by Visual Basic for Applications to define the text string.

REFERENCES

For additional information about getting help with Visual Basic for Applications, please click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

163435 VBA: Programming Resources for Visual Basic for Applications

Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:10/11/2006
Keywords:kbdtacode kbhowto kbProgramming KB141578
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