Other Words for Said

Other Words for Said Direct speech can be difficult to smoothly navigate when youre writing, but if youre writing a novel or short story, dialogue is almost certainly going to happen at some point. When there is a conversation, the most common thing to do is use said when a person speaks: Are you crazy? said Mary. Some of the time, said John. Well, said Mary, I wish you would give me some warning before you do things like that! Ill try, said John. Then Mary leaned in close and said, Oh shucks! I love you anyway! Thats a whole lot of said right there, and it gets repetitive pretty fast, doesnt it? It becomes essential to have alternatives for the word said if you want your writing to sound decent. There are several ways this can be done. Skip the Bits Outside the Quotation Marks Altogether! If a conversation involves two people (dialogue), your reader will quickly see the two people are talking. That means that you can introduce your speakers, and then continue the conversation without saying who said what on the assumption your reader will be able to work out who is speaking, at least for a few lines. Describe Actions Before or After the Quotation Marks For example: Oh shucks! I love you anyway! Mary cuddled closer with a sigh. In our example, we can clearly see Mary was doing the talking. If John says something next, hell get a new paragraph to himself, emphasizing the change of speaker. Voila! Conundrum avoided. Saying words have been completely skipped, but we still know who was talking. Use Words Other than Said Depending on context, there are a whole bunch of alternative words for said we can choose. Perhaps Marys romantic utterance was: Whispered Breathed Murmured Sighed Purred Blurted Gurgled Chuckled Mumbled Warbled Simpered Her opening, Are you crazy? could have been: Asked (a little weak, but there it is) Exclaimed Cried Yelled Squealed Screamed Shrieked Squeaked Shouted Bellowed Roared Snapped Wailed Gasped Laughed Giggled Tittered Complained Objected Protested Sobbed Groaned Grumbled Scolded Whats interesting is all these words imply mood much better than said does. Was Mary objecting to Johns actions in a good-humored, frightened or angry way? Your choice of words can tell your reader what her tone of voice was. And when she told John she loved him anyway, was she feeling romantic or amused? Did she blurt it out unexpectedly, or was she being coy and flirtatious? How did John feel when he responded to her initial protestation? Was he serious or light-hearted? Changing Moods Look at how these words change the mood of the conversation: Are you crazy? sobbed Mary. Some of the time, muttered John. Well, Mary complained, I wish you would give me some warning before you do things like that! Ill try, John promised. Then Mary leaned in close and murmured,  Oh shucks! I love you anyway! You should have gained a sense of how the person speaking felt by the way they said it. Now see how changing the talking words can change the entire scene: Are you crazy? giggled Mary. Some of the time, chuckled John. Well, Mary laughed, I wish you would give me some warning before you do things like that! Ill try, John grinned. Then Mary leaned in close and purred,  Oh shucks! I love you anyway! Ok, so its not great literature. Id probably have avoided introducing the speaker from about line 3, reintroducing them if the mood changed, or the conversation started to get too long to follow, but you get the idea. Example one is a lovers tiff, while example two is a couple having fun together. Thats a big difference, and said just wouldnt have conveyed that. List of Said Words According to Mood Angry, Tense Snapped Snarled Growled Barked (lots of doggy words so far) Bellowed (and a moose) Roared (and a lion this one could also imply triumph) Grumbled Complained Objected Remonstrated Huffed (this one is just mildly exasperated) Nagged Blustered Thundered (and some weather) Screamed Rasped Worried Yelled Screamed Shouted Shrieked Hollered (a bit of volume in these last few!) Seethed Ranted Fumed Happy, Amused, Positive Laughed Chuckled Giggled Grinned Guffawed Gurgled Joked Quipped Teased Cheered Crowed Certain, Sure, Confident Declared Asserted Announced Insisted Assured Argued Bragged Boasted Stated Reassured Preached Commented Remarked Confirmed Vowed Promised Observed Sarcastic, Creepy Leered Sneered Jeered Drawled Taunted Cackled Mocked Asking or Asking for Begged Pleaded Requested Questioned Queried Probed Asked (of course) Inquired Entreated Cajoled Wheedled Unsure Faltered Stammered Stuttered Hesitated Guessed Blurted Trembled Speculated Tones other than the ones weve already covered (especially the loud ones) Whispered Murmured Hissed Trilled Sang Sniffed Snivelled Mewled Moaned Purred Sobbed Groaned Moaned Grunted And were just scratching the surfacehere are a few more: Volunteered Lied Interrupted Interjected Exclaimed Remonstrated Finished And as for finished, I realize this list is far from actually being finished. Said is all very well, but with so many more expressive words to choose from, you probably dont need it! Do you have a favorite word to use other than said when you write thats not listed above? Let us know and well add it to our list.