Punctuating Dialogues

Front

What is dialogue?

Back

Dialogue is a conversation between two or more characters in a story.

Front

Why do we use quotation marks in dialogue?

Back

Quotation marks are used to show the exact words spoken by a character.

Front

What punctuation mark is used to show a question in dialogue?

Back

A question mark (?) is used at the end of a question in dialogue.

Front

What punctuation mark is used to show excitement in dialogue?

Back

An exclamation mark (!) is used to show excitement or strong feelings in dialogue.

Front

How do you punctuate a sentence that ends with dialogue?

Back

If the dialogue is followed by a tag (like 'he said'), use a comma before the closing quotation mark.

Front

What is a dialogue tag?

Back

A dialogue tag is a phrase that attributes the dialogue to a character, such as 'he said' or 'she asked'.

Front

How do you punctuate a question in dialogue?

Back

If the dialogue is a question, place the question mark inside the quotation marks.

Front

What is the correct punctuation for this sentence: "I love ice cream" said Mia?

Back

The correct punctuation is: "I love ice cream," said Mia.

Front

What is the correct punctuation for this sentence: "Can we go to the park?" asked Sam.

Back

The punctuation is correct as is: "Can we go to the park?" asked Sam.

Front

What do you do if the dialogue is a command?

Back

If the dialogue is a command, use a comma before the closing quotation mark if followed by a tag.