It shows that your opinion is worth repeating and that others are interested in what you say.
But being quoted can often work against you too.
This is especially the case with gossip.
If you are not prepared to say a thing to a person's face, then it is better not to say it behind their back either.
This is one case in which you are bound to get quoted and then you will have to deal with the situation when that person eventually hears what you said about them.
The best way to avoid your words being quoted is not to say them in the first place.
Say nothing that you wouldn't want to be repeated.
This is hard advice to follow when you get angry and lose your temper.
Words said in anger can often come back to haunt you years later.
Once those words are said you can't take them back and people can use them against you for years to come, or the hurt that they caused can be flung in your face again and again.
Try to avoid that situation.
If you are boiling over and feel that you are about to say something that you'll later regret, walk away.
Put some space between you and the person you are angry with.
Give yourself time to cool down before you say any more.
The other person may be upset by you leaving them mid discussion, but that is far better than uttering hurtful words that can be quoted back at you for as long as your relationship lasts.
Words are hardly ever a one-off event.
There is every chance your words will be quoted, often the less you want them to be, the greater the chance it seems.
If you don't want your words misconstrued, quoted out of context and used against you, then don't say them in the first place.
Follow the golden rule - if your words wouldn't look good on the front page headlines of a national newspaper, don't say them.
People can't quote you when you say nothing.