comic speech bubbles

Meaning of Speech Bubbles in Comics

Last Updated on July 1, 2024 by online dating and meeting in real life

The visual tool used to represent the characters’ speech, dialogue, or conversation in the comics is known as a “bubble”. The meaning of speech bubbles in comics will be addressed, emphasizing their proper use and comic grammar.

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What are Speech Bubbles?

Different kinds of speech bubble, normal speech, electronic devices, extended speech, some insights, what do you think, cite this post, speech bubbles.

One of the most important parts of comics is the character dialogue. It is one of the  features of comics  and it is as valuable as the images themselves. They are a great support for the narrative within the comics.

As part of the visual language of comics, bubbles are small expressions in themselves, with their own meaning. They can communicate in a situation or context. Therefore, it is important to know the meaning of speech bubbles in comics to know how to express emotions in a dialogue, nature, the source of the speech, and sounds, for instance.

Certainly, speech bubbles are usually added after the editing and photography of the images. However, at this point in  the process of making a comic , you must have the text included inside the bubbles. The extension of the text must be set during the scriptwriting process, as well as the type of bubble to be used. Therefore, knowing the meaning of speech bubbles in comics ensures a better choice of each one to correctly communicate the message you want to convey.

Creative Process of Making Comics

There are different kinds of speech bubbles because there are different ways that a character could dialogue or communicate a message in a comic. There are some examples:

The “basic” bubble — which often has an oval shape — is used for normal character speech. The “tail” of the bubble should generally point towards the speaker, particularly towards his mouth or the area that produces the sound.

Vertical bubbles can be used when there is not enough horizontal space.  Therefore, this provides flexibility in distributing the bubbles within the panel.

Most of the time, this kind of bubble has an oval shape. However, it can have different shapes.

To express a thought, an idea, or that one is daydreaming, the bubble with a cloud shape is the right one. Besides, the shape can also be oval, like the basic one. But its tail is formed by a group of circles, or ellipses. For example, there are 2 or 3 circles.

Besides, this bubble serves to communicate what animals, plants, or things cannot say, as they “do not talk”. For example, the meow of a cat or the bark of a dog could be represented by onomatopoeias. However, to express their internal dialogue, you can use the cloud bubble.

Rectangular bubbles without a tail are known as captions. They express what the narrator says in such a way that they support the course of the story. In other words, this space describes, in words, a given situation that would not be attributed to a character. Sometimes they are appreciated as voice-overs. Likewise, they are used for subtitles.

Multi-edged bubbles usually represent screaming or a message out loud, but the screams may have a positive or negative connotation. For example, the character is urging his team to try harder. However, the same bubble can be used to insult or express abuse.

Depending on the connotation of the message, either negative or positive, the text in its content may have variations in style: bold, larger, or different colors, for instance.

On the other hand, this bubble can also vary in shape, depending on the intensity of the emotion to be expressed and the style of the comics.

This is used to represent words or sounds coming from an electronic device such as a television, telephone, radio, or microphone. The tail of the bubble points towards the device, and it looks like lightning. In addition, it can be used for robot and hologram dialogs.

Whispers are presented with a dashed-lined bubble. However, it also represents saying a secret or speaking in a very low voice. Certainly, the shapes can also vary for greater flexibility.

The wavy bubble indicates that the speaker is suffering from physical weakness. Likewise, it indicates that a character is exhausted, semi-unconscious, or about to faint. So, its wavy shape reflects the weakness of the character’s voice.

• If the speech or dialogue is too long or a pause is required, the text is distributed into extended speech bubbles.

Moreover, the extended speech bubble has variations. Dialogues can be interleaving but use a bridge that links the speech bubbles of the same character.

• Speech bubbles represent the characters’ dialogue or thoughts.
• Normal speech is often represented by an oval-shaped bubble.
• To express a thought or an idea, the bubble with a cloud shape is the right one.
• Rectangular bubbles without a tail are known as captions.
• Multi-edged bubbles usually represent screaming or sending a message out loud.
• The bubble, whose tail looks like a flash of lightning, is used to represent words or sounds coming from an electronic device.
• Whispers are presented with a dashed-lined bubble.
• The wavy bubble indicates that the speaker is suffering from physical weakness.

Comics are not just a piece of entertainment for children and teenagers. This massive medium is appreciated and understood by adults as well. Marketing agencies and advertising companies have understood this and have started to use it to attract potential customers.

In conclusion, the narrative power of comics can be exploited in graphic design to communicate ideas interestingly and differently. Learning the meaning of speech bubbles in comics is one of the first steps. If graphic designers want to take advantage of the full potential of comics, it is necessary to understand the concepts and features of comics and their different genres. It is also necessary to follow the process of creating a comic in order to develop a story through this format.

In the comments section, tell me if you already knew these bubbles and their meanings. Do you know other bubbles?

• APA Style: Perea Hernandez, I. (2019, August 15). Meaning of speech bubbles in comics. Retrieved from https://ilkaperea.com/2019/08/15/meaning-of-speech-bubbles-in-comics/
• Chicago Style: Perea Hernandez, Ilka. “Meaning of Speech Bubbles in Comics.” Ilka Perea, August 15, 2019. https://ilkaperea.com/2019/08/15/meaning-of-speech-bubbles-in-comics/ .
• MLA Style: Perea Hernandez, Ilka. “Meaning of Speech Bubbles in Comics.” Ilka Perea, 15 Aug. 2019. Web. https://ilkaperea.com/2019/08/15/meaning-of-speech-bubbles-in-comics/ . Accessed [insert current date].
• Harvard Style: Perea Hernandez, I. 2019. Meaning of Speech Bubbles in Comics. [ONLINE] Available at: https://ilkaperea.com/2019/08/15/meaning-of-speech-bubbles-in-comics/ (Accessed [insert current date]).

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Bibliography

• Acevedo Fernández, J. (2019). Para hacer historietas.  Instituto de Estudios Peruanos.
• Labarre, N. (2020). Understanding Genres in Comics (Palgrave Studies in Comics and Graphic Novels). Editorial Palgrave Pivot.
• McCloud, S. (2006). Making Comics: Storytelling Secrets of Comics, Manga and Graphic Novels. William Morrow Paperbacks.
• Stevenson, J. (2020).  How to Draw Manga (Includes Anime, Manga and Chibi) Part 2 Drawing Manga Figures. Editorial Golden Valley Press.

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Other Free Design Resources

550+ speech bubbles free vectors & clipart to download now, by iveta pavlova.

2 years ago

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Looking for some cool speech bubbles to add to your next comic book or poster design? Here is a huge collection containing hundreds of speech bubbles and balloons , thought bubbles, spiky bubbles, dashed line bubbles, chat text boxes, and more.  

Why are there different types of speech bubbles, anyways? Well, let’s see. A speech balloon with a tail pointing toward the person indicates talking. A cloud-shaped thought bubble with smaller bubbles for a tail indicates a person thinking. Spiky speech bubbles represent screaming, excitement, or even a loud sound like an explosion. And when the speech bubble line is dashed, it means the person is talking quietly.

Alright, let’s move on to the real thing. Enjoy and download now 500+ free speech bubble templates for your designs!

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Speech Bubbles on Pictures & Backgrounds

Looking for ready-made pictures and designs with editable speech bubbles? Well, here are several examples of speech bubbles on pictures, background, and pop art illustrations, featuring cartoon characters or not. All ready to be downloade for free and filled with your own custom text.

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Printable Speech Bubbles

A collection of free printable speech bubbles prepared in scalable PDF file formats or high-resolution PNG images. These speech bubbles are ready for printing and using in personal or commercial projects, according to your needs.

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More Cool Empty Speech & Thought Bubbles

Here, we’ve gathered even more cool empty speech bubbles made in various attractive styles. You will find chalkboard speech bubbles, 3D speech and thinking bubbles, glass effect, or sticker speech bubbles that will help you create even more attractive designs.

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Well, that’s it! Fingers crossed you’ve found this collection of speech bubble templates useful and managed to get the best downloadable resources for your design needs.

If you are looking to enrich your personal collection with even more freebies and goodies for designers, why don’t you check out a few more freebie posts, as well?  

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Iveta is a passionate writer at GraphicMama who has been writing for the brand ever since the blog was launched. She keeps her focus on inspiring people and giving insight on topics like graphic design, illustrations, education, business, marketing, and more.

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Color Options

Customize the color of your speech bubbles to fit perfectly with your design's color scheme.

What is a cartoon speech bubble generator?

A cartoon speech bubble generator is a tool that allows you to create custom speech bubbles with your own text, style, and color.

How do I customize my speech bubble?

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Yes, the generated speech bubbles can be used for both personal and commercial projects.

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I recommend using remove.bg to remove the background of the image. You can color fill the inside of the speech bubbles, so they remain white. (the little things at the bottom are tails that you can add to the speech bubbles optionally.)

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