The Dialogue Thesaurus: A Fiction Writer's Sourcebook of Dialogue Tags and Phrases (13 page)

"Is that really what he said?" he asked,
baffled
.

Confounded
, Michael spoke for the first time. "I still don't understand what it means."

Discombobulated
by their sudden exit, Marcy asked, "Was it something I said?"

"Your brother is really strange," she said,
dumbfounded
by Carl's erratic behavior.

Sorry," she said
scatterbrained
, "but where is the bathroom again?"

admonishing; adversarial; analytical; appraising; approving; argumentative; assessing; belittled; berated; biased; blamed; captious; censored; challenged; condemning; condescending; constructive; correct; critical; cynical; demanding; demeaning; denounced; derided; derisive; disapproved of; disapproving; disbelieving; discerning; discouraging; discriminating; disfavorable; dismissive; disparaging; doubtful; examined; fastidious; fickle; finicky; frank; fussy; hypocritical; impartial; intolerant; judgmental; judicious; logical; nagging; narrow-minded; nit-picky; objective; opinionated; opposing; overcritical; patronizing; pessimistic; picky; prejudiced; priggish; pushy; reproachful; sardonic; scornful; self-critical; self-deprecating; self-effacing; skeptical; slanderous; terse; unbelieving; unbiased; unconvinced; unemotional.

"You don't strike me as the type," she said, her eyes
appraising
.

"Well," he said with an air of
condescension
, "nobody's perfect."

"Jonathan," Helen said,
disapproving
. "You mustn't talk that way about your grandmother."

Overcritical
of the service, Mr. Jones lashed out. "I demand to see the person in charge at once."

"Oh, I'm sure you tried your best," she said,
skeptical
.

bamboozled; beguiled; betrayed; bewitched; brainwashed; cagey; cajoled; calculating; caught out; cheated; cheated on; clandestine; coaxed; coerced; compromised; confidential; conflicted; conned; conniving; conspiratorial; conspired against; contrived; controlled; controlling; convinced; covert; cunning; deceitful; deceived; deceptive; devious; disbelieved; disbelieving; dishonest; disingenuous; disloyal; distrusted; distrustful; double-crossed; doubted; doubtful; dubious; duped; evasive; facetious; fake; fallacious; false; farcical; fraudulent; furtive; guileful; guilty; gypped; hoodwinked; hustled; immoral; incongruent; leery; lied about; lied to; manipulated; manipulative; mischievous; misinformed; misled; mistrusted; mistrustful; morally bankrupt; opportunistic; ostensible; paranoid; perfidious; persuaded; persuasive; phony; pliable; pliant; predatory; preyed upon; propagandistic; propagandized; remorseless; ruthless; sabotaged; sarcastic; scheming; screwed over; secretive; shifty; shortchanged; shrewd; sinful; sinister; sketchy; slighted; sly; sneaky; stealthy; subversive; suckered; surreptitious; suspicious; swindled; tactical; traitorous; treacherous; treasonous; tricky; twisted; underhanded; unfaithful; unreliable; unrepentant; unscrupulous; untruthful; unvirtuous; wily; wolfish.

Feeling
conned
, he bellowed, "Why, that crooked bastard!"

"I hope for your sake it's true," he said with an expression of
doubt
.

Feeling
hustled
, she spoke up. "I want my money back, thief!"

"A gin and tonic," Gavin ordered,
leery
of the woman's watchful eyes.

Being
underhanded
, he whispered, "Give me the key to his apartment."

abhorred; abhorrent; crude; defiled; despicable; detestable; dirty; disgusted; disgusting; execrated; fetid; filthy; foul; freakish; fulsome; ghastly; gross; grotesque; gruesome; icky; indecent; indecorous; lewd; licentious; loath; loathed; loathing; loathsome; macabre; monstrous; nauseated; obscene; offensive; perverse; perverted; poisonous; putrid; queasy; rancid; repelled; repugnant; repulsed; repulsive; revolted; revolting; rotten; salacious; shocking; sick; sickened; sleazy; slimy; sordid; squeamish; vile; vulgar; wicked.

"You're not sorry," John said,
disgusted
with him.

Feeling
loathsome
, she replied, "I won't be here much longer."

Nauseated
, the child said, "I can't bare to look at you."

"Keep it away from me," she said with a look of
repugnance
.

Sensing his
vile
stare, she whimpered, "Please, let me go."

abashed; awkward; bashful; clammy; demure; disconcerted; embarrassed; flush; flustered; frigid; humiliated; jittery; judged; mortified; nervous; overanxious; self-conscious; shaken; shaky; shamed; shameful; sheepish; shy; skittish; squeamish; stunned; surprised; timid; traumatized; tremulous; uncomfortable; uneasy; unnerved; vulnerable.

"Do you like it here?" he asked, slightly
bashful
.

"I didn't realize someone was in here," Dave said,
embarrassed
.

"Please forgive me," Mary said, with a look of
humiliation
on her face.

Feeling
shamed
, she protested. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

Uncomfortable
at the mere suggestion, he replied, "Of course not."

accusative; accusatory; accusing; adversarial; anxious; argumentative; avaricious; begrudged; besmirched; bitchy; bitter; bratty; brooding; callous; callow; catty; childish; competitive; confrontational; conniving; contemptible; contemptuous; coveted; covetous; cunning; demanding; desperate; devious; dictatorial; disapproving; doubtful; embittered; emotional; envious; fixated; forlorn; greedy; grudging; guarded; hateful; hostile; immature; infatuated; insecure; intimidated; intrusive; irrational; jaded; jealous; jilted; leery; longing; lovelorn; manipulative; melodramatic; mistrustful; neurotic; nosy; nutty; overprotective; paranoid; paternal; petty; possessed; possessive; protective; psychopathic; psychotic; pushy; resentful; scandalous; scorned; scornful; selfish; solicitous; sour; spiteful; stalked; suspicious; threatening; unfaithful; unromantic; untrusting; vigilant; wary; watchful; worried; wounded; wrathful; zealous.

"I want to see your phone," Marcy said,
argumentative
now.

"Give it to me right now!" she said in a fit of
childishness
.

"Don't worry yourself, dear," he replied, a hint of
deviousness
in his voice.

"Is he rich?" he asked her, clearly showing his
insecurity
.

Jealous
of his new girlfriend, Amanda whispered: "Does she really think those shoes look good on her?"

abiding; accessible; accommodating; acknowledging; affirmative; affirming; agreeable; amenable; amicable; apologetic; appeasing; assenting; complaisant; compliant; complicit; complimentary; compromised; congenial; conservative; considerate; contained; convivial; cooperative; credulous; devoted; docile; doted on; doting; dutiful; flattered; friendly; generous; genial; good-natured; hospitably; idolized; ingratiated; inviting; loyal; obedient; obliged; obliging; obsequious; pandering; parasitic; passive; peaceable; permissive; pious; placated; pliable; propitious; receptive; reciprocative; selfless; servile; sincere; slavish; smarmy; submissive; subservient; supplicating; supportive; sycophantic; unimposing; uxorious; venerative; worshipful.

Feeling
amicable
, Arthur replied, "I didn't mean anything by it."

"I only want what's best for you, sir," she said, trying her best to
appease
him.

Compliant
to his wishes, she responded, "Very well, I'll have it sorted out immediately."

"I will fetch your coat," he said with
docility
.

Slavish
and
sycophantic
, Ronald said, "You will always be my top priority."

abiding; accepting; accessible; accommodating; acknowledging; affable; amiable; appreciative; charming; chatty; chivalrous; civil; classy; communicative; complimentary; considerate; conversational; cordial; courteous; courtly; cultivated; cultured; deferential; formal; friendly; genial; genteel; good-natured; gracious; hospitable; inviting; kind; kindhearted; mannerly; mild-mannered; modest; nice; obeisant; obliging; polite; respected; respectful; sociable; thankful; thoughtful; unimposing; warm; welcoming; well-mannered; well-meaning.

"So, Jerry," he said, trying his best to remain
civil
, "what is it you do?"

Feeling
complimentary
, she motioned to her dress. "What a lovely garment, Lucy."

"Thank you, sir," Harry said,
gracious
as usual.

Showing great
hospitality
, he said, "Would you care to join us?"

With
kindness
, she consoled the old man. "I'm so sorry for your loss."

accomplished; almighty; ambitious; aristocratic; arrogant; assertive; audacious; auspicious; austere; authoritative; autocratic; autonomous; boastful; bold; bossy; cavalier; charismatic; charming; chauvinistic; cocky; commanding; complacent; conceitedly; condescending; confident; courtly; cultivated; cultured; dapper; debonair; decorous; despotic; devious; dictatorial; dignified; direct; distinguished; dominant; domineering; draconian; dutiful; egocentric; egotistical; elegant; elite; eminent; exalted; extroverted; flamboyant; flashy; flawless; foppish; forceful; gaudy; glamorous; grand; grandiose; haughty; immodest; imperious; important; indulgent; infallible; influential; intelligent; invincible; invulnerable; knightly; knowledgeable; lofty; magisterial; magnanimous; masterful; narcissistic; noble; obnoxious; opinionated; oppressive; opulent; ostentatious; outspoken; overconfident; patriotic; patronizing; peremptory; perfect; perfectionistic; pompous; powerful; prestigious; pretentious; prideful; prissy; privileged; prodigious; prosperous; proud; puissant; refined; regal; righteous; royal; sanctimonious; satisfied; self-absorbed; self-approving; self-assured; self-centered; self-confident; self-important; self-interested; self-possessed; self-righteous; self-satisfied; showy; smug; snobbish; snobby; snooty; sophisticated; stuck up; stylish; suave; supercilious; superior; triumphant; tyrannical; unctuous; urbane; vain; vainglorious; victorious.

"Ignore it," he said,
authoritative
. "Now, follow me."

Confident
now, Lauren said, "Hand me my phone."

Haughty
and full of liquor, she laughed. "You silly little urchin."

With
pretentious
vigor, he replied, "Well, we demand only the best for our children."

"It's a good thing I'm here then, isn't it?" Henry said, a
vainglorious
smirk crossing his lips.

abrasive; abusive; affronted; antisocial; argumentative; bad-mannered; barbaric; barbarous; bitchy; boorish; bossy; brash; bratty; brutish; caddish; cantankerous; careless; chauvinistic; coarse; combative; condescending; defamatory; defiant; demanding; deplorable; discourteous; dismissive; disobedient; disobliging; disrespectful; disruptive; flippant; impatient; impertinent; impolite; imprudent; impudent; impulsive; inconsiderate; indecorous; indignant; insensitive; insincere; insolent; insubordinate; insulted; intruded upon; lewd; libelous; loutish; mouthy; nosy; obscene; patronizing; pushy; querulous; rash; rude; snide; snubbed; surly; tactless; tasteless; terse; thankless; thoughtless; unamiable; unapologetic; unceremonious; uncharitable; uncivil; uncommunicative; uncordial; uncouth; ungenerous; ungenial; ungracious; ungrateful; unharmonious; uninhibited; unkind; unpleasant; unprofessional; unrefined; unwelcoming.

Revealing her
abusive
nature, Katie hissed: "You look ugly in that shirt."

"Keep your questions to yourself!" David replied in a
brutish
manner.

"Get your facts straight," he said in a
coarse
tone.

"I refuse to answer any more questions," she said, feeling
insulted
.

"I thought your wife had blonde hair," said
tactless
Kimberly.

academic; amoral; analytical; assertive; astute; authoritative; brainy; candid; civil; competent; composed; conscientious; critical; decisive; deductive; diligent; diplomatic; direct; eloquent; enlightened; erudite; experienced; formal; forthright; forward; frank; frugal; geeky; grounded; helpful; illuminated; important; informative; ingenious; instructive; intelligent; intense; intent; interrogative; judicious; knowledgeable; laconic; learned; lenient; logical; mature; meditative; methodical; meticulous; militaristic; mindful; moral; observant; passionless; patient; pedantic; perspicacious; philosophical; political; practical; pragmatic; professional; proficient; prosaic; purposeful; qualified; rational; realistic; reasonable; responsible; restrained; sagacious; sagely; scholastic; scientific; sensible; serious; shrewd; skillful; smart; sober; staunch; steadfast; stern; stoic; stolid; strategic; strict; studious; tense; terse; unamused; unfazed; wise.