WORDS TO USE INSTEAD OF ‘SAID’

I THINK one of my biggest weaknesses when it comes to writing is to create compelling dialogue. This makes sense, considering that I lean towards being more logical than emotional. I often feel like my characters sound like robots instead of living, breathing beings. So, how does one write emotional dialogue and in effect, make their characters come alive? Also, what other words can I use instead of ‘said’, ‘stated’ or ‘commented’?

 Here is the best articles I have found in my quest to obtain tips:

 Dialogue words: Other words for ‘said’

 I like this article because it goes BEYOND suggesting alternatives to ‘said’. It also teaches you on how to craft a scene by bringing together the setting, words and actions of a character. It then listed alternatives to said, grouped together by the primary emotion you want your character to express.

 In response to this, I figured I should do a quick exercise myself. I went to another website, grabbed a list of emotions (with some redactions) and started churning out ‘synonyms’ without referencing to any source. I also gave myself a bit of freedom and allowed short phrases. Then, I beefed it up with more research.

Admiration/Adoration/Awe
sighed wistfully,giggled, marveled, raved

Amusement
chortled, chuckled, snickered, sniggered, teased

Anxiety/Awkwardness
squeaked, stuttered, urged, stressed, babbled, blubbered, stammered

Annoyance/Anger
screamed, hollered, yelled, cursed, grumbled, shouted, bellowed, stressed, fumed, snarled, ranted, complained, grunted, mocked, criticised, bleated, interrupted, nagged, barked  

Boredom
sighed, muttered, drawled, trailed off

Calmness
stated, spoke in measured tones, maintained, articulated, commented, communicated, opined

Confusion
wondered aloud, puzzled, guessed, pondered, questioned, repeated

(Sexual) Desire
moaned,teased, tittered, whispered, beckoned, flirted, crooned

Pain
yelped, hissed, roared, groaned, yelled

Excitement
exclaimed, chattered, gushed, raved,

Fear/Horror
yelled, uttered, quavered, screamed, warbled,

Interest
hummed with interest,whispered in excitement, squealed,

Joy
exclaimed, yelled, laughed, gushed, praised, sang,

Sadness
cried,sobbed, mumbled, lamented, snivelled, trembled, beseeched

Sympathy
reassured, cooed, consoled, comforted

Triumph
exclaimed, declared, commanded, bragged, boasted, trumpeted

Other banter words
bantered, quipped, breathed, challenged, guessed, hinted, implied, hypothesized, proposed

I’ll take a pause here as it has been a long and tiring work week for me. One day, I shall wade through synonym.com for even more alternatives. Until next time!