The grammar police are not happy. The incorrect use of quotation marks has got them so riled they have inevitably taken to the web to expose offenders. One such blog, Very Suspicious Quotation Marks, has gathered together some "hilarious" examples that may set your teeth on edge

The Guardian's style guide is quite clear on this matter: "It is completely unnecessary to use quotation marks for mundane words and unexceptional quotes." Lynne Truss – who famously adopts a "zero tolerance approach" to punctuation gaffes – was similarly scornful in her bestseller, Eats, Shoots and Leaves: "There is a huge amount of ignorance concerning [their] use … Until the beginning of the 18th century, quotation marks were used in England only to call attention to sententious remarks. Then in 1714 someone had the idea of using them to denote direct speech."

But language and punctuation evolve. Quote marks are routinely used today – particularly in texting and Twitter – to denote irony, emphasis and exception. However, some transgressions, these included, deserve to be ridiculed.

• This article was amended on 14 and 17 February 2012 to make clear, for the avoidance of doubt, that the images were collated by Smosh, not produced by them.