A distinction in contemporary philosophy between a word being intended to refer to something apart from itself (use) and its being intended to refer to itself (mention). The convention has been adopted to write the word without quotes when it is being used and with quotes when it is being mentioned. E.g., in this sentence the word “king” is being used: “The king of France is on vacation.” And in this sentence the word “king” is being mentioned: “In English ‘king’ is a noun.”   In classical logic, mention is termed “material suppositio.” Also see suppositio.