Fixing “Parse Error” in SQLite When Using Text Values

[Rajeev Bagra]

 

❓ Q1: Why did I get this error in SQLite?

Parse error: near “School”: syntax error

When I ran this query:

SELECT name, city
FROM schools
WHERE type = Public School
AND city = Massachusetts;

✅ Answer:

Because text values must be written inside quotes in SQL.
Without quotes, SQLite treats Public and School as column names, which causes a syntax error.

---

❓ Q2: What is the correct way to write this query?

✅ Answer:

Use single quotes ' ' for text values:

SELECT name, city
FROM schools
WHERE type = 'Public School'
AND city = 'Massachusetts';

This tells SQLite that "Public School" and "Massachusetts" are strings, not column names.

---

❓ Q3: Why are quotes mandatory for text in SQL?

✅ Answer:

SQL has different rules for different data types:

Data Type	Example	Needs Quotes?
Number	25	❌ No
Text	School	✅ Yes

Example:

age = 25              -- OK
city = 'Boston'       -- OK

Without quotes, SQL gets confused.

---

❓ Q4: Should I use single quotes or double quotes?

✅ Answer:

Always prefer single quotes ' ' for text.

✔ Correct:

city = 'Delhi'

❌ Avoid:

city = "Delhi"

Because " " is usually meant for column names in SQL.

---

❓ Q5: How can I check what values exist in a column?

✅ Answer:

If you are unsure about exact values, run:

SELECT DISTINCT type FROM schools;

or

SELECT DISTINCT city FROM schools;

This shows all available options so you can match them correctly.

---

❓ Q6: What if my query still gives no results?

✅ Answer:

Check for:

1️⃣ Case Sensitivity

Some databases treat text as case-sensitive.

Try:

SELECT name, city
FROM schools
WHERE LOWER(type) = 'public school'
AND LOWER(city) = 'massachusetts';

2️⃣ Extra Spaces

Sometimes data contains spaces:

SELECT name, city
FROM schools
WHERE TRIM(type) = 'Public School';

---

❓ Q7: What is the main lesson from this error?

✅ Answer:

👉 Always wrap text values in single quotes when writing SQL queries.

✔ Rule to remember:

Text → ' '
Numbers → no quotes

---

✅ Final Correct Query (Reference)

SELECT name, city
FROM schools
WHERE type = 'Public School'
AND city = 'Massachusetts';

---

 

[Author]

Posts