title: So what is the story with 4 quotes?
body: <p>I was experimenting in the python shell with the type() operator. I noted that:</p>
  
  <pre><code>type('''' string '''') 
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>returns an error which is trouble scanning the string</p>
  
  <p>yet:</p>
  
  <pre><code>type(''''' string ''''')
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>works fine and responds that a string was found.</p>
  
  <p>What is going on? does it have to do with the fact that <code>type('''' string '''')</code> is interpreted as <code>type("" "" string "" "")</code> and therefore a meaningless concatenation of empty strings and an undefined variable? </p>