the term used for a character speaking out loud in a text

a sentence that includes direct speech first before the reporting clause

a pair of punctuation marks that signal direct speech to the reader

a clause that tells the reader who said the speech sentence and how

Speech first: inverted commas and punctuation rules

English

In this unit, pupils learn to develop their accuracy of using inverted commas in both speech first and speech second sentences. In 'Speech punctuation, parenthesis and apostrophes', pupils will revise their previous learning on apostrophes and learn to punctuate speech interrupted sentences.  

In 'Speech punctuation and apostrophes', pupils learnt to use the apostrophe for plural possession and inverted commas for direct speech. In this unit, pupils will learn to develop their accuracy of using inverted commas in both speech first and speech second sentences.  

Apostrophes and speech punctuation  

In this sentence, which words should have inverted commas around them? What a mess cried Miss Ofoedu.

Which of these are the functions of the reporting clause? 

use a capital letter at the start of the speech

finish the speech with closing punctuation (?,!)

Which of the following sentences are rules for using direct speech?

"Stop talking! shouted the headteacher loudly."

"Stop talking!" shouted the headteacher loudly. 

"Stop talking"! shouted the headteacher loudly. 

Which version below uses **all** the correct punctuation for this sentence? Stop talking shouted the headteacher loudly.

"What's wrong __________ " asked Jun kindly.

"Shush___________" hissed Andeep with an aggressive tone. 

"We're going home ___________" sighed Jacob.

Match each piece of speech to the most appropriate closing punctuation to fill the gap. 

capital letter at the start of the direct speech

full stop at the end of the reporting clause

closing punctuation at the end of the direct speech

Which rule has been broken in this speech first sentence? "I can't believe this" sighed Miss Ofoedu with a shake of her head.

Which sentence has both apostrophes for contraction used correctly?

Match the contracted form to the full form. 

Which of these sentences use an apostrophe for singular possession (where one noun owns other nouns)?

The farmer's tractor was covered in mud. 

The boys' work was beautifully presented. 

Which of these sentences use an apostrophe for plural possession (where more than one noun owns other nouns)?

The teachers' meeting went on for hours. 

Match the sentence to the way the apostrophe has been used. 

The walls' bricks were old and crumbling. 

The bricks' surfaces were rough and coarse. 

The owner's opinion was all that mattered. 

Which of these sentences use an apostrophe for plural possession correctly?

Starter Quiz