How to use brackets correctly

Don’t confuse them with parentheses. Square brackets are a grammatical function that add additional information and context to a quote. They’re also used specifically for the [sic] adverb, which indicates a quoted misspelling or grammatical error that’s transcribed exactly as is. And lastly, they’re used for specifics such as stage directions and nestling parentheses.

They might seem intimidating, but this important writing essential can enhance and streamline your work.

When to use brackets

There are three main uses for brackets:

When you are truncating a quote

The primary use of brackets is for clarifying or adding information in a quote.

Shawn said, “Steve had given [his ex-wife] Caitlin a gift.”

The [sic] adverb

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This is a Latin phrase that means sic erat scriptum, or “thus was it written.” This means that if you’re quoting a piece of material exactly as it was found, it may have spelling or grammatical errors. These don’t reflect on your own transcription abilities; rather, [sic] indicates that an error was made on behalf of the writer or speaker. [Sic] goes directly after the error in a quote.

The woman had left behind a letter that said, “I want a devorce [sic].”
“I dunno [sic],” the suspect said in the transcript. “I was trying to eat desert [sic].”

Information within parentheses

When you are adding information as an aside, you use a parentheses. But multiple asides nestled in each other will require a bracket that surrounds a parentheses:

The man was from New England ([central Massachusetts, to be specific [(which he said was a boring place to grow up)]]) and it made so much sense.

Stage directions

If you’re writing a play, brackets are used for stage directions:

[Enter ANTIGONUS with a Child, and a Mariner]
[Exit, pursued by a bear]

“Learning when to use brackets can add credence to your work. Though relatively rare as compared to parentheses, it helps to know when a bracket goes in your writing.”

When to use parentheses over brackets

Parentheses are more commonly used than brackets, as they refer to additional information that could clarify or add context to your sentence—but your sentence can also function without the parenthetical aside. For example:

My name is Steve (but my close friends call me by my middle name, Earl).

The sentence “my name is Steve” functions on its own, and the information contained within the parentheses may or may not be relevant.

Brackets, on the other hand, are used exclusively when inserting your comments into someone else’s words, in order to clarify a quote.

The senator said: “the bill [the one voted on last week] finally passed.”
“If you prick us do we not bleed? [In this passage, Shylock is referring to his own shared humanity.] If you tickle us do we not laugh?”

Learning when to use brackets can add credence to your work. Though relatively rare as compared to parentheses, it helps to know when a bracket goes in your writing. For more ways to improve your work, check out Microsoft 365 for writing tips.

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