How to Write Dialogues in Spanish for Maximum Clarity
Have you ever seen a Spanish dialogue and thought it looks a bit different from an English one?
If you haven’t seen one yet, let me show you!
On my bookshelf, I have two editions of One Hundred Years of Solitude (Cien años de soledad) by Gabriel García Márquez: one is in English and the other is a 2007 commemorative edition from the Royal Spanish Academy (Real Academia Española).
Here are two lines of a dialogue between José Aureliano Buendía and the gypsy:
Desconcertado, sabiendo que los niños esperaban una explicación inmediata, José Arcadio Buendía se atrevió a murmurar:
—Es el diamante más grande del mundo.
—No —corrigió el gitano—. Es hielo.
Disconcerted, knowing that the children were waiting for an immediate explanation, José Arcadio Buendía ventured a murmur:
“It’s the largest diamond in the world.”
“No,” the gypsy countered. “It’s ice.”
Notice the glaring differences in punctuation?
Keep reading to learn why Spanish dialogues look different and how to write them in Spanish!
Angular Quotation Marks, Double Quotation Marks, or Long Dashes?
As you can see in the dialogue above, Spanish uses long dashes called rayas (—) as dialogue punctuation. Conversely, English uses double quotation marks.
Some Spanish writers use double quotation marks or angular quotation marks (« and »), but the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) says it should be rayas.
In this article, I follow the official RAE recommendations by using rayas. However, I also tell you what to watch for when using double or angular quotation marks.
See also:
How to Punctuate Dialogues in Spanish
To write dialogue in Spanish, you need to do a bit more than change the quotation marks into long dashes.
Here are a few more factors to take into account!
1. Punctuation Goes Outside Quotation Marks
Whereas in American English, commas and periods go inside the quotation marks, in Spanish, they always go outside.
No matter whether you use quotation marks (double or angular) instead of long dashes, you must apply this rule.
Spanish:
“No me gusta su gato”, dijo Pedro.
«No me gusta su gato», dijo Pedro.
English:
“I don’t like his cat,” Peter said.
Fun fact! It’s also the rule in British English for punctuation to go outside single quotation marks.
2. Long Dashes Precede New Speakers
In Spanish dialogue, the long dash precedes the intervention of each of the speakers, without having to mention their names.
—¿Cuándo te escribirás a un curso de español?
—No tengo ni idea.
—Apúrate, tienen una promoción en la escuela de la esquina.
—Gracias, voy a verlo esta tarde.
“When will you enroll in a Spanish course?”
“I have no idea.”
“Hurry up, they have a promotion at the school around the corner.”
“Thanks, I’m going to check it this afternoon.”
Normally, in Spanish novels, what each character says appears on a new line, just like in English.
No space goes between the long dash and the character’s words and the closing of what the character says ends with punctuation, not with another long dash.
3. Long Dashes Introduce the Narrator’s Comments
Narrative texts also use long dashes to introduce or frame the narrator’s comments.
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro.
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro—. Voy a prepararme algo.
“I’m hungry,” Peter said.
“I’m hungry,” said Pedro. “I’m going to prepare something.”
You use the long dash to introduce the character’s words at the beginning of the line. Later, you use it only to introduce or frame what the narrator says, such as:
—dijo Pedro—
It’s not necessary to add the long dash again to introduce additional character dialogue.
Now, we need to consider two situations when alluding to the narrator’s comments. They may use “speaking verbs” to credit the speech to the character who said it or it may refer to something completely different (as you’ll see).
Punctuation With Speaking Verbs
When the narrator indicates that a character is speaking, they use so-called “speaking verbs,” such as: dijo (said), respondió (answered), and preguntó (asked).
Some formatting standards to keep in mind include:
- Leaving a space between what the character says and the long dash that introduces the narrator’s comment.
- Not leaving a space between the long dash and the narrator’s comment
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro.
“I’m hungry,” said Pedro.
- The narrator’s comment begins in lowercase:
—dijo Pedro.
- The punctuation mark corresponding to the character’s phrase is closed after the narrator’s clarification, whether it’s a comma, period or semicolon.
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro.
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro—. Voy a prepararme algo.
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro—, y tengo sed.
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro—; y tengo sed.
- If the punctuation mark that you want to put after the narrator’s entry is a colon, write it after the closing long dash:
—Ayer salí a correr —y añadió: Ahí conocí a alguien.
“I went out for a run yesterday,” and added, “I met someone there.”
- If the punctuation mark that corresponds to the character’s phrase is a question mark, exclamation mark, or ellipsis (…), they should always close before the narrator’s intervention
—¿Tienes hambre? —preguntó María.
—¡No comas esto! —gritó Juan—. ¡Es veneno!
Notice how the narrator’s intervention starts in lowercase even though there is a punctuation mark before that would require an uppercase letter.
Make sure you don’t make the mistake of capitalizing the speaking verb:
—¿Tienes hambre? —Preguntó María. (incorrect)
- If the dialogue continues, it closes with a long dash after the narrator’s intervention.
—Tengo hambre —dijo Pedro—. Voy a prepararme algo.
Common Speaking Verbs in Spanish Dialogue
Here is a list of the most common speaking verbs in the third-person past tense:
| English | Spanish |
| accepted | aceptó |
| advised | aconsejó |
| admitted | admitió |
| affirmed | afirmó |
| asked | preguntó |
| begged | rogó |
| commented | comentó |
| concluded | concluyó |
| joked | bromeó |
| lied | mintió |
| promised | prometió |
| repeated | repitió |
| responded | respondió |
| said | dijo |
| shouted | gritó |
| suggested | sugirió |
| threatened | amenazó |
| whispered | susurró |
You can use these verbs to vary your narrator’s comments in a Spanish dialogue, but remember that the narrator’s comments should be transparent. Using overly sophisticated speaking verbs may trip up the reader.
Punctuation Without Speaking Verbs
When you introduce the narrator’s comment that includes “non-speaking verbs,” there are a few more rules to remember:
- The character’s words must be closed with a period and the narrator’s phrase must begin with a capital letter.
—No te preocupes. —Cerró la puerta y salió corriendo.
“Don’t worry.” He closed the door and ran out.
- If the character’s speech continues after the narrator’s comment, write the period that marks the end of the narrator’s comment after the closing long dash.
—No te preocupes. —Cerró la puerta y salió corriendo—. Volveré pronto.
“Don’t worry.” He closed the door and ran out. “I’ll come back soon.”
Punctuation for Thoughts
What do you do when your character thinks rather than says the words aloud? Use angular quotation marks instead of long dashes.
«Tengo hambre», pensó Pedro.
“I’m hungry,” Pedro thought.
—Puedes hacerlo —le dije y pensé «pero te costará mucho trabajo».
“You can do it,” I told him and thought, “but it will cost you lots of work.”
Practice Your Spanish before Writing a Spanish Dialogue
Now you know how to write dialogue in Spanish between two friends or characters. Congratulate yourself on taking yet another step towards fluency in Spanish!
While traveling to a Spanish-speaking country is enough motivation for most Spanish learners, if writing is your thing, other possibilities await you.
Just imagine, one day you could become a bilingual writer!
Yes, there are some bilingual writers who write books in their second or even third language. Sometimes they are able to publish books in all the languages they know. Isn’t it amazing?
Our 1-on-1 classes at Homeschool Spanish Academy will help you improve your language skills faster than if you were studying alone. To see if it works for you, sign up for a free class with one of our amazing, Spanish-speaking teachers from Guatemala. Show them your Spanish dialogues and scripts to practice them with a professional!
Ready to learn more Spanish grammar? Check these out!
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- How to Use the Past Participle as an Adjective in Spanish
- Punctuation Marks, Special Characters, and Other Symbols in Spanish
- What is the Conditional Tense in Spanish?
- Master All the Forms of Ser in Spanish: Your Ultimate Grammar Guide
- 20 Most Common Subjunctive Triggers in Spanish
- 23 Common Spanish Prepositions You Can Use Today
- 25 Common Subjunctive Phrases in Spanish Conversation
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