dialogue tags
"She said" phrases
Dialogue tags are the short phrases that identify who is speaking in written conversation, typically using verbs of speech: he said, "I'm leaving," she replied, "Wait," John whispered.
The most common tags use said and asked, which tend to disappear for readers, while more colorful verbs like exclaimed, muttered, or hissed draw attention to themselves.
Writers debate whether plain tags or varied ones serve the prose better.
- askedMade an inquiry
- saidVerbally expressed, past tense
- repliedGave an answer back
- mutteredSpoke barely audibly
- shoutedSpoke very loudly
whispered · bellowed · interjected · duologue · narrative voice · literature · cried · repartee · subtext · show don't tell · turn-taking · stated · attribution · murmured · exclaimed · novel · screenplay · growled
dialogue tagsexposition
Systematic explanatory presentation
interior monologue · stage directions · descriptive passages · scene-setting · backstory
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