punctuation - Is it correct to use quotes before a comma when not representing spoken text?

In another question I asked, I used quotes to demark specific terms, but after I posted the question, I wondered if I'm doing it right.

Usually, when quoting something a person says, the quotation mark goes after the comma or period, like so:

"This is my opinion," she said.

However, I sometimes use quotes not to represent something said by anyone, but instead for delineating a set term or phrase to make it clear that those words go together and none of them should be mistaken for a part of the rest of the sentence. Like this:

Should I say "stand up", "standup", or "stand-up"?

This looks weird to me:

Should I say "stand up," "standup," or "stand-up"?

... but maybe I'm wrong about the rules.

Is it correct to use quotes in this way? And if so, are the quotes positioned correctly relative to the other punctuation marks?

Are there other alternatives for delineating terms without the use of quotes?

Answer

Quotation marks are sometime used:

- to draw attention to a word;

- to indicate an unusual use of a word;

- to suggest that the writer want to be distanced from word.

The comma and the question mark come after the quotation marks in such cases.

In this light, the sentence

Should I say "stand up", "standup", or "stand-up"?

is perfectly valid.

Instead, the sentence

Should I say "stand up," "standup," or "stand-up"?

is not valid because, although the question mark came after the quotation marks (... or "stand-up"?), the comma does not allow the rule I have mentioned.¹

¹ For more explanations and examples see Collins Easy Learning - Grammar and Punctuation, to which I am referred to for answering the question you have asked.