If someone is describing sound in first person narrative, there are instances where italics might include dashes. Or, if you wish to forego the dashes when using a sound in your narrative, you can still use italics and commas to emphasize the onomatopoeia and add a “beat” where appropriate.

How do you write sounds in writing?

Phonemes (speech sounds) are represented in writing by placing the letter(s) used to represent the sound between slashes — so, for example: the sound that you say at the beginning of the word pot is represented by /p/. It is vital that teachers understand how speech sounds work.

Should onomatopoeia be italicized?

Typographically, onomatopoeias present the same choices as thoughts: Set them normally, quoted, or italicized. Style guides recommend using one style consistently, whichever you choose. But set verb onomatopoeias as normal text, especially if they're common words.