Direct speech

When do we use direct speech?

We use direct speech whenever we speak. We use the term direct speech to describe the way we represent the spoken word in writing.

Form of direct speech in writing

Actual spoken statement direct statement in writing

I'm waiting ' 'I'm waiting,' John said

Actual spoken question direct question in writing

'When did you arrive, John?' 'When did you arrive, John?' Mary asked

Notes on the use of punctuation marks

1 Quotation marks (or 'inverted commas') go round what is actually spoken and enclose other punctuation marks such as commas (,) full stops (.), question marks (?) and exclamation marks (!). They may be single ('...'), or double ("...") and are placed high above the base-line at the beginning and end of each quotation: 7s that you Jane⁷' Bob asked "Is that you, Jane?' Bob asked

2 What is said, plus reporting verb and its subject, is considered as a whole unit. When the subject + reporting verb [> App 45] comes at the beginning of a sentence, the reporting verb is always followed by a comma (sometimes by a colon (:) in AmE) and the quotation begins with a capital letter: John said 'It's good to see you '

When the subject + reporting verb comes after what is said, the quotation has a comma before the second quotation mark: It's good to see you ' John said

But if the quotation ends with an exclamation mark or a question mark, a comma is not used as well: 'Where can I get a taxi? John asked

Subject + verb can come in the middle of a quotation-sentence: 'Where in this wretched town ' John asked 'can I get a taxi? The second part of the quotation does not begin with a capital letter because it is not a separate sentence.

3 If there is a 'quote within a quote' (e.g. if we are quoting someone's
exact words), we use a second set of quotation marks. If double
quotation marks have been used on the 'outside', single ones are
used on the 'inside' and vice versa. The inside quotation has its
own punctuation, distinct from the rest of the sentence:
Ann said 'Just as I was leaving, a voice shouted "Stop!
'What do you mean? "Are you all right?” Ann asked

Direct speech

We can also use a second set of quotation marks when we mention the title of e.g. a book, film or play:

How long did it take you to read "War and Peace"?' I asked