[Feature Request] Native quote/citation UI for in-conversation message references

[natu123]

Bug Description
Feature Request: In-conversation Quote / Citation UI

Summary

Both Claude Code CLI and the Claude Desktop app lack a native quote/citation feature. Users currently rely on manually typing >
markdown syntax to reference previous messages, which is inefficient and error-prone.

Problem

When having long, multi-turn conversations, users frequently need to reference specific parts of earlier messages (both their own
and Claude's). Currently:

• Users must manually copy-paste text and format it with >
• There's no way to link a quote back to its source message
• Quoting multiple passages requires repetitive manual work
• Context gets lost in long conversations without clear references

Proposed Solution

Add a native quote/citation mechanism that allows users to:

1. Select any text from any previous message (AI or user) and insert it as a quote in the current input
2. Quote multiple passages within a single prompt message
3. Auto-link quoted text to its source message for traceability

For Claude Code CLI:

• Keyboard shortcut or command to select and quote from conversation history
• Rendered with clear visual distinction (e.g., indented block with source reference)

For Claude Desktop (Windows/Mac):

• Right-click or highlight-to-quote UI
• Drag-and-drop quote insertion
• Visual indicator showing which message the quote originates from

Why This Matters

• Precision: Eliminates ambiguity about what the user is responding to
• Efficiency: Reduces manual copy-paste overhead in long conversations
• Context preservation: Especially critical when conversations span hundreds of messages
• Accessibility: Makes complex multi-topic discussions manageable

Prior Art

• Slack, Discord, Telegram all support message quoting
• GitHub Issues/PRs support quote-reply
• These are considered essential features for threaded communication

---Submitted by @natu__ (Gles)

Environment Info

• Platform: win32
• Terminal: windows-terminal
• Version: 2.1.45
• Feedback ID: 76c88700-eb48-4ee5-b8d9-7ebbfb2874d4

[adamnemecek]

This is an essential feature for the conversing with the agent as well as for me keeping track of what Claude said.

[github-actions]

Closing for now — inactive for too long. Please open a new issue if this is still relevant.

[github-actions]

This issue has been automatically locked since it was closed and has not had any activity for 7 days. If you're experiencing a similar issue, please file a new issue and reference this one if it's relevant.