Also 6–8 cotation. [ad. med.L. quotātiōn-em, n. of action f. quotāre to QUOTE. Cf. obs. F. quotation (Godef.).]
† 1. A numbering, number. Obs. rare–1.
1456. Sir G. Haye, Law Arms (S.T.S.), 100. Here efter followis the chapitris of the ferde buke efter the quotaciouns of the Rubricis.
† 2. A (marginal) reference to a passage in a book: see QUOTE v. 2. Obs.
1532. More, Confut. Barnes, VIII. Wks. 776/1. His quotacion is in the mergent in this maner. De pene, dis. ii. Si in glossa.
1557. N. T. (Genev.), To Rdr. **iii. Then is it noted with this starre *, as the cotations are.
1574. Whitgift, Def. Aunsw., 793. Although the wordes in the texte be altered, yet the quotations in the margent remayne still.
1664. H. More, Apology, 508. The Quotation of the place from whence this Objection is taken is here omitted, but I question not but that it aimes at that passage, Chap. 4. Sect. 3. Book 6. which runs thus [etc.].
1683. Moxon, Mech. Exerc., Printing, 388. That the Compositer may … Justifie his Notes or Quotations exactly against the designed Line of the Page.
b. Typog. (ellipt. for quotation-quadrat.) A large (usually hollow) quadrat used for filling up blanks (orig. the blanks between marginal references).
1683. Moxon, Mech. Exerc., Printing, xxii. 224. He Justifies his Stick-full just to the breadth of the Wooden Letter with Quadrats or Quotations. Ibid., 236. He sets … a row of Quotations almost down the length of the Page.
1771. Luckombe, Hist. Print., 287. Justifiers, as well for broad as narrow Quotations, are cast, from Double Pica to all the Regular Bodies.
1808. Stower, Printers’ Gram., 97. Quotations are cast to two sizes, and are called broad and narrow…. Quotations should not be cast so high as they sometimes are.
1888. Jacobi, Printers’ Vocab., 109. Quotations, large quadrats, generally of four-line pica.
3. The action or practice of quoting.
1646. Sir T. Browne, Pseud. Ep., 279. This Translation … is often followed … by our Saviour himselfe in the quotations of the Old Testament.
1765. Museum Rust., IV. lxiii. 286. Nothing can be more unfair than false quotation.
1781. Johnson, in Boswell, 8 May. Classical quotation is the parole of literary men all over the world.
1875. Emerson, Lett. & Soc. Aims, Quot. & Orig. Quotation confesses inferiority.
b. A passage quoted from a book, speech, etc.
1690. Locke, Hum. Und., IV. xvi. (1695), 383. He … cannot doubt how little Credit the Quotations deserve, where the Originals are wanting.
1711. Steele, Spect., No. 11, ¶ 1. He … enforced his Arguments by Quotations out of Plays and Songs.
1771. Junius Lett., xlvi. 245. After giving a false quotation from the journals … he proceeds.
1828. D’Israeli, Chas. I., I. viii. 249. That prodigal erudition which delights in inexhaustible quotations from writers whom we now deem obscure.
1887. Bowen, Virgil, Pref. (1889), 7. Hundreds of Virgil’s lines are for most of us familiar quotations.
† 4. A note or observation; a matter noted. Obs.
1608. Middleton, Family of Love, V. iii. Your wife can furnish you with notes out of her cotations.
a. 1635. Naunton, Fragm. Reg. (Arb.), 51. It were not amisse to take into observation two notable quotations. The first was, a violent indulgencie of the Queen [etc.].
† 5. Share, QUOTA. Obs. rare–1.
1613. J. Chamberlain, MS. Lett. to Sir D. Carleton (T.). That they should not be able to answer their quotations (as they call them), or payments to the general charge.
6. The amount stated as the price of stocks or any commodity for sale.
1812. Examiner, 21 Sept., 608/2. Sales … sustain the last quotation.
1861. Goschen, For. Exch., 56. To give any exact or definite quotation of the price of long-dated paper.
1883. Pall Mall Gaz., 7 April, 5/2. Manufacturers … are disposed rather to increase than to decrease their quotations.
7. attrib. and Comb., as (sense 3 b) quotation-capping (see CAP v.1 5), -monger; (sense 2 b) -justifier, -quadrat; quotation-marks, signs used in writing or printing to mark the beginning and end of a quotation; in English the inverted comma (see COMMA 4) and apostrophe are employed.
1683. Moxon, Mech. Exerc., Printing, xxii. 236. Then he sets his Notes … and with Quotation Quadrats of proper Bodies, Justifies them up.
1750. Student, I. 284. The Author shews his skill and address as a Quotation-monger.
1771. Luckombe, Hist. Print., 287. Quotation quadrats require to be dressed and finished as carefully as any other Sort.
1885. Pall Mall Gaz., 11 April, 5/1. Characters who … indulge themselves in a little bout of quotation-capping.
1888. Jacobi, Printers’ Vocab., 109. Quotation justifiers, spaces for justifying lines of quotations.
1897. R. Talbot Kelly, in Century Mag., 563/1. I must put play in quotation-marks to express the sarcasm of it.
Hence Quotational a., of or pertaining to a quotation or quotations; Quotationally adv., by way of quotation, as a quotation; Quotationist, one who (habitually) makes quotations.
1643. Milton, Divorce, To Parlt. Eng., Let the Statutes of God be … considered not altogether by the narrow intellectuals of Quotationists.
1829. Blackw. Mag., XXVI. 443. The quotationist … never saw even the Parthian back of the lucky fugitive.
1862. Sat. Rev., 13 Sept., 308. He then observed quotationally, ‘Men cannot determine [etc.].’
1869. J. Eadie, Comm. Galatians, 239. It is only a quotational illustration of the truth announced in the previous verse.
1878. J. W. Ebsworth, Introd. Brathwait’s Strappado, xv. The phrase … has the imperfect quotational marks before it.
