Interruptions, Pauses, Stutters, and Breaks: Transcribing them the Parrot way

Updated: 3/13/25

Speakers rarely speak in perfect sentences; they will change what they are saying halfway through, talk over each other, or cut off other speakers.

At Parrot, we use double dashes, or em dashes (--) to indicate interruption within a transcript. This helps differentiate it from hyphenated words and makes it quite clear that the speech is cutting off. We ALWAYS indicate interruptions whether a speaker interrupts themself, or is cut off by somebody else.

Self-Interruption

Here's an example of how to indicate someone interrupting their own sentence:

NOTE: After every em dashes in the middle of a sentence, there should ALWAYS be a space before the next word.

Here’s an example of how to use double dashes when there are filler words after:

NOTE: Em dashes are NOT used after filler words. If the speaker is pivoting in the middle of their sentence and uses a filler word in between, please place the em dash before the filler word.

Interruption by other speakers (<crosstalk>)

Often, speakers will cut other speakers off. Here's an example:

Here, the speakers continue to talk over each other and the speakers are indiscernible for a short time:

NOTE: If the em dashes start a speaker block, then there is no space after and the word follows the em dashes.

Longer Pauses: Elipses (...)

Ellipses (…) are used to indicate a significant pause within a speaker's dialogue. To ensure consistency across all transcriptions, follow these standardized guidelines:

When to Use Ellipses

Mid-Sentence Pauses: Use an ellipsis (…) if a speaker pauses for more than five seconds within a sentence.

When Not to Use Ellipses

❌ Between Sentences: If a pause occurs between two sentences, do not use an ellipsis. Instead, end the first sentence with proper punctuation and begin the next sentence as usual.

Incorrect: "I don’t know… Let’s try tomorrow."
Correct: "I don’t know. Let’s try tomorrow."

❌ Between Speakers: If a long pause occurs before a new speaker begins, do not use an ellipsis. The transcript should simply reflect the new speaker’s response.

Stutters

When part of a word is repeated and the same word continues after, then we note this with em dashes. This is called a stutter. All stutters must be included in a Full Verbatim transcript. Proper nouns will always keep their first capital letter whilst non-proper nouns at the beginning of a sentence will not. When transcribing a stutter in full verbatim, it's important to accurately capture the speaker's exact words, including any repetitions of the initial sound, syllable, or word caused by the stutter. This helps to maintain the integrity of the spoken content and provide a true representation of the dialogue.

Initial sound and syllable:

Word repetition:

NOTE: The general rule for repeated words is to use em dashes (e.g., "He-- he-- he didn't mean it"). However, there is an important exception to this rule for "yes" and "no." When these words are repeated, they should be separated by commas (e.g., "Yes, yes, yes" or "No, no, no"), rather than em dashes. This ensures smoother readability in the transcript and reflects the natural flow of conversation.

If a speaker stutters over a number, please spell it out for readability purposes:

NOTE: Stutters are indicated by a rapid succession of the word or initial sound/syllable.