direct speech

British

noun

the reporting of what someone has said or written by quoting his exact words

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Broadcaster Eamonn Holmes said: "He made direct speech entertaining. With that he was ahead of his time. I'm just sorry he hasn't had more time."

From BBC • Aug. 4, 2025

This remained true even when participants were told to direct their attention toward a silent film and ignore the story, suggesting that top-down attention isn't required to mentally separate direct speech and its echo.

From Science Daily • Feb. 15, 2024

“It was the toughest, coldest, and most direct speech I had ever heard John Kennedy give publicly,” O’Donnell said.

From Washington Post • Apr. 30, 2015

And in The New Yorker, Kenneth Goldsmith referred to its participants as having “produced a body of distinctive literature marked by direct speech, expressions of aching desire, and wide-eyed sincerity.”

From Salon • Oct. 6, 2014

Marjorie's direct speech and frank, honest eyes had pleased the older woman.

From Marjorie Dean, High School Freshman by Lester, Pauline

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023