Introduction

Speech marks are inverted commas that show speech 

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They look like this: " "

 

They always come in pairs: one at the beginning and one at the end of what is being said!

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For example: "Hello there"

 

 

Rule 1

Speech marks go around the actual words that are being said.

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For example:

• Ricky said, "What did you say?"

• "I don't want to go out today," said Phoebe. "It's too sunny."

 

 

Rule 2

There always needs to be a comma, full stop, exclamation mark, or question mark between the speech and the speaker (before the speech mark).

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For example:

• "I need a new t-shirt," sighed Olivier.

• Asta yelled, "Not yet!"

• "I have a green thumb," boasted Jessica, "I can save any plant!"

 

 

Rule 3

There always needs to be a comma, full stop, exclamation mark, or question mark at the end of the speech (before the speech mark).

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For example:

• "I need a new t-shirt," sighed Olivier.

• Asta yelled, "Not yet!"

• "I have a green thumb," boasted Jessica, "I can save any plant!"

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Rule 4

When someone new is speaking, you should start a new paragraph!

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For example:

"How many potatoes is that?" inquired Cara.

"Too many," said Francis.

"It was your brother again, wasn't it?" sighed Cara. "That boy sure loves his potatoes."

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Rule 5

If the speech is a complete sentence, you should always capitalise the first letter.

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For example:

• "This is a full sentence," claimed Target.

• Tuition confirmed proudly, "Yes, this is also a full sentence."

• "This is a complete sentence," stated Tuition. "This is another complete sentence."
  
   

• "This sentence, on the other hand," proceeded Target, "has been split!"