How to describe appearance in english
How to describe appearance in english
How to Describe Someone’s Physical Appearance in English
Describing a person in English is a common task to talk about.
In the IELTS test, the examiner might ask you to describe a family member or a friend. You might have to describe a colleague or a neighbour.
ESL students seem to get stuck at this fairly simple thing to talk about. So I wanted to create the master plan that you can refer to from top to bottom.
We have a lot of ground to cover so let’s dive in.
Table of Contents
DESCRIBE THE BODY
The first thing to talk about is the body of the person. That means you describe two things — the person’s height and their body shape/size.
In English, we have to be careful about how we talk about someone’s body. If we use language that is too direct it can be considered offensive or impolite to some people. It is always a good idea to take care when describing someone’s body shape or size.
DESCRIBE HEIGHT
When describing someone’s height there are only three ways we can do it.
We can either say a person is tall, medium-height or short.
There are exceptions when someone is very tall so we would say exactly that: very tall. The same if someone is very short — although we have to be careful of saying that to someone’s face. No one wants to be described as very short.
Here we might say one of the following:
He is not very tall
He is a little on the short side
She is not that tall
She is kind of petite
Petite is a French word that means ‘small’. We use this word in English to describe a woman, especially a young woman if she is short and of a small build.
If someone is very tall we might say the following:
He is a giant
He towers over other people
Again be careful when using these terms. We might describe a man as a giant but only in a very friendly, humorous way.
And we should not use these expressions to describe a very tall woman. Often a very tall woman is conscious of being too tall and may not like people to make direct expressions about her height.
So essentially you can say three things to describe someone’s height:
He is tall
She is medium-height/He is average height
He is short
And the exceptions might be:
He is very tall
She is very short
DESCRIBE BUILD
This is where we have to be careful. In some cultures, people are very direct when describing other people’s bodies. Maybe it acceptable to say that someone is fat in some countries but in an English-speaking country, it is not.
Use sensitive and polite terms and you should have no problems.
Big/Small
The first thing we can say is whether a person is big or small. We might say “He is a big guy”. This could mean a man who is tall and very strong. But it could also mean a man that is overweight.
Using the word ‘big’ is a replacement word for ‘fat’ these days. You might describe someone as fat when you are describing him to someone else but you should never say it to their face.
If we describe a woman as big, it usually means she is overweight.
We might describe a man as small. This could mean that he is short but maybe also quite thin.
A small woman may just be short in height.
Fat/Thin
This is where you have to be very careful when describing someone.
Both the words fat and thin can be seen as being a little insensitive if used in the wrong context. So you need to use these words with great care.
Rather than say he is fat, we can say:
He is a big guy
He is overweight
He is kind of big
If the person is a close friend or family member, we might say:
He is overweight
He needs to lose weight
He is obese
But generally speaking, we should avoid using this word to describe someone.
The same goes for thin. This word can also have a negative meaning. People rarely use it to describe others as it may imply that they are unhealthy.
Instead, we might say:
She is slim
If you do describe someone as thin, it means they are very thin and possibly unhealthy.
Muscular
You can use the word muscular to describe someone who regularly goes to the gym and has big muscles.
A woman rarely wishes to be referred to as muscular. Unless she also regularly goes to the gym and works out with weights.
John goes to the gym almost every day, so he is very muscular. He looks like an iron man!
Athletic
A person you describe as athletic is someone who is slim and has very little fat on their body. You could describe someone who goes running as athletic.
Do not use the word strong to describe this kind of person. Fit is more appropriate.
He goes running every day, so he has a very athletic figure. He looks great!
After we talk about someone’s body — and their height and body shape we can then talk about their head and face.
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DESCRIBE HEAD & FACE
In English, we rarely comment on the size of a person’s head. Unless they have a huge or tiny head! Even then we have to be careful as it can be seen to be a negative comment to make.
But if you do say anything about a person’s head it could be the following:
He has a really big head
He has a large head
He has a big head
Her head is kind of small
She has a very small head
Her head is small for her size
DESCRIBE HAIR
Hair can come in many different colours:
Brown
Blonde
Red
Grey or White
Many people from Asia or Africa have black hair. It is very simple to describe.
He has black hair.
But in many other places, people have different coloured hair.
Brown Hair
Brown hair is very common.
But we can say the different shades of it:
She has light-brown hair
He has dark-brown hair
Mousy-brown hair is a kind of boring light-brown colour found in Europe or America. Women might describe their own hair colour as being mousy-brown. It is a negative comment but one that is seen as a little joke.
Blonde Hair
Students often describe this colour as ‘golden’. But we should say blonde.
She has blonde hair.
Red Hair
This is a very rare hair colour, but it does exist.
He has red hair.
Sometimes people might describe someone as a ‘redhead’ — this means someone with red hair.
Do not use the word ‘ginger’ as this is seen as negative.
Grey/White Hair
If someone is old or they are just losing their hair colour, then we can say this:
She has grey hair
His hair is almost white
DESCRIBE FACE
General Details
After we describe someone’s general appearance in terms of their body, we then begin to describe their face.
Positive/Negative
We usually refer to whether or not someone is attractive.
We can describe a man as handsome or good-looking. A woman we describe as beautiful or good-looking. Sometimes people use the word beautiful to describe a man if he has more feminine features.
He is a really handsome guy. Many girls look at him in the street.
She is so beautiful. People always comment to each other how attractive she is.
They are both very good-looking. They look good together.
Sometimes people are ugly but it is rude to say this to someone’s face.
People might use the following terms instead:
He is not very good-looking
He is not so handsome
He is not blessed with good looks
For someone that is neither good-looking or ugly, we might say ordinary looking.
DESCRIBE EYES
After you talk generally about someone’s face and comment whether they are beautiful, handsome or pretty we can look at more details about their face. The first thing we usually notice about someone is their eyes. So that might be the next thing you describe.
We can use the following phrases to describe someone’s eyes:
She has beautiful eyes
He has deep-set eyes (this is to describe a person who has eyes that seem to be deeper in their face)
She has big eyes
He has clear eyes
She is doe-eyed (we use this term to describe someone who has big, child-like eyes. Someone who is doe-eyes often has an innocent look about them)
He has heavy eyes
She has lidded eyes (This is for someone who has heavy eyelids, maybe they often look tired)
He has piggy eyes (Be careful when using this term — it means someone had small eyes. It is largely considered an unattractive look)
From top to bottom: She has very clear eyes, she has deep-set eyes, she has big eyes, he is doe-eyed.
We can also say beady eyes, boss-eyed, pop-eyed.
Beady-eyed — we use this to talk about someone who has eyes that make someone look untrustworthy!
Boss-eyed — if someone has eyes that look like they are looking at two different things we use this expression. It is a negative term.
Pop-eyed — to describe someone with prominent eyes that appear to be popping out of their head! Nor a positive term.
The colour of the eyes can be blue, green, grey, black, brown or hazel.
DESCRIBE NOSE
After describing someone’s eyes we then might talk about their nose.
Noses can be big, long or small.
She has a long nose
He has a big nose
She has a small nose
Sometimes people have a bump in the middle of their nose. In which case we say: He has a bump in his nose.
DESCRIBE MOUTH
Then we can talk about someone’s mouth.
Mouths can be big, sexy, beautiful, small or wide.
We often use the word smile to describe someone’s mouth because we use our mouth to smile.
She has a big beautiful smile
She has a very sexy smile
He has a wide mouth
He has quite a small mouth
DESCRIBE TEETH
We often just describe someone’s teeth as being very white and beautiful.
She has really beautiful white teeth, she must brush them five times a day.
Or if someone has very bad, unattractive teeth.
He has terrible teeth, all discoloured and they look unhealthy. He should go to the dentist.
DESCRIBE EARS
Ears can be big or small.
He has big ears
He has very small ears
Or the person’s ears might stick out from their head.
He has sticky-out ears
His ears stick out
DESCRIBE COMPLEXION
When talking about the colour of someone’s skin be careful.
People can be the following colours:
White
Black
Brown
The only people we describe as black are people from Africa or African origin — African-American.
He is a black man
She is black
People from Asia, the Middle-East or from Central America we may describe as being brown.
If someone has light-coloured skin, we do not say:
He is very white
He has pale skin
She is very pale-skinned
She has a light complexion
This is more polite.
If someone’s skin has a darker skin colour, we do not say
He is very black
He has dark skin
He is very tanned
He is has a dark complexion
Sometimes a person might have a red-coloured skin. We can say:
He has a ruddy complexion
He is red-faced
DESCRIBE NECK
We can describe someone’s neck in the following ways:
She has a long neck
He has a short neck
It seems he has no neck at all
He has a very strong, thick neck
The most polite term is to say someone has a long neck. The other terms are considered impolite.
DESCRIBE FACIAL HAIR
You should never say a woman has facial hair! This is very impolite.
But we can say for a man:
He has a beard
He has a moustache
He has a goatee
He has some stubble
DESCRIBE HANDS
If we describe someone’s hands we might say they are either big or small.
He has big hands
She has small hands
But some people’s hands are very gentle and they might have long fingers.
She has long elegant fingers
He has an artist’s hands — very soft and gentle
We can describe the skin of someone’s hands
She has soft hands
He has coarse hands like a worker
After you describe someone’s body, their face and maybe their hands then you can talk about their body language and their gestures. Body language is the way a person uses their body when communicating with others.
DESCRIBE BODY LANGUAGE & GESTURES
We can say the kind of body language that the person often uses. Their body language is an extension of their personality.
She always crosses her arms when she is angry with me.
She always greets me with a big smile. She is such a happy person.
He often bites his nails because he is a very nervous person.
James often tilts his head to one side when he is thinking about something or lost in thought.
When she is lost in thought, she always puts her hand to her face.
John is very impatient. He always taps his fingers on the desk if someone is only one minute late.
Mike always seems confused about something, always rubbing his head like he has forgotten something.
Jerry walks around with slouched shoulders — he never stands upright.
On the other hand, Cole walks around like a soldier, back straight and shoulders back. I guess he is a very confident person.
Lucy has quick movements, always moving her hands or head very quickly. She is very nervous, excitable person.
Bill has a very slow way of moving. He never seems worried about anything.
Other Ways to Describe Someone
I have only covered the things you can say to describe someone’s physical appearance — their body, their face and their body language.
But there are many other things you can talk about when describing someone.
Telling stories are also a good way to describe someone – I wrote about that technique here.
And using similarities and differences is another useful method. I wrote about that here.
Their Job
You can talk about the job they do. This paints a very clear picture of the kind of person they are in the world. For example:
My father is an engineer — we might think your father is a very serious person good at solving problems.
My sister is a teacher — we might regard your sister as a caring person who likes to help others.
Their Hobbies
If you talk about the interests, the person has in their free time this also gives us a very clear picture of the person.
My brother likes to write stories in his free time — he has a very creative mind.
My friend likes to fix cars at the weekend — he is good with his hands.
You can also describe the clothes the person wears.
Special Markings
But you can describe a person’s unique points. The person might have a birthmark or a tattoo. Or maybe a scar. These can identify the person and are often very special.
Conclusion
This covers most of the things you need to say when talking about someone’s physical appearance.
You should practice these things you can say by describing your parents, your brother or sister, and your friends. Keep describing different people and it will become natural to you.
A good way to start is to write sentences in your notebook. This will help you remember the words and phrases you can use.
And always remember the system when describing someone:
Body and Height
Head
Hair
Face
Eyes Nose Mouth
Body Language and Gestures
Follow this general rule and you will be fine!
In the IELTS test it is very common to describe someone so please use this guide to help you.
I would be very glad to hear from you so let me know in the comment below.
Описание внешности на английском: Лексика + примеры с переводом
Умение правильно описать себя или облик другого человека высоко ценится и нередко встречается в различных тестах и экзаменационных заданиях.
Кроме того, общаясь с носителями на бытовые темы, вам часто придется описывать внешность людей, героев любимого фильма, членов своей семьи и т.д. Поэтому крайне важно владеть базовой лексикой на тему внешности и уметь ее использовать.
Ниже мы привели список самых распространенных слов и фраз, которые могут пригодиться при изучении темы «Внешность человека». Также рекомендуем воспользоваться готовыми карточки по теме «Appearance». Их можно использовать как вспомогательный материал при работе в группе и для самостоятельного изучения.
Полезная лексика по теме «Внешность»
Для начала давайте вспомним, как называются части лица и тела человека.
Теперь давайте разберемся, как можно описать внешность более предметно. Для этого ниже выделены группы слов и словосочетаний, относящиеся к лицу и общему телосложению.
Как описать черты лица (face)?
При описании лица используется огромное количество эпитетов, которые тоже можно разбить на различные подгруппы.
| a face face features черты лица eyes (colour) глаза (цвет) Описание волос и кожи (hair and skin)В отдельную группу также стоит выделить слова, относящиеся к характеристике волос и кожи. Так, волосы у человека могут быть разного цвета, длины и структуры (прямые или кудрявые) и т.п. Используйте следующую лексику для описания волос и кожи: Если говорить о коже и цвете лица (complexion), то можно использовать следующую лексику:
Описание фигура/телосложения (build/constitution)При описании фигуры и телосложения можно использовать следующие слова: Если говорить исключительно о форме фигуры (Figure): Например: Также одной из отличительных черт любого человека является его походка. В английском, как и в русском языке, существует много эпитетов для описания стиля походки человека: Внешний вид человека в целомЧеловека всегда можно описать одним емким словом, не вдаваясь в детали. General appearance (внешний вид) может быть: Ниже представлено видео, которое можно использовать в качестве вспомогательного материала при запоминании лексики: Комплименты о внешностиВсегда приятно знать, что ты хорошо выглядишь. Легкие, ни к чему не принуждающие комплименты — отличный способ сделать приятное собеседнику и расположить его к себе. Бывает достаточно выучить несколько положительных прилагательных и сочетать их с конструкциями: Ниже приводим несколько эффектных комплиментов касательно внешнего вида человека, которые вы можете использовать в повседневной речи. Примеры описания внешностиСайт знакомств
Розыск преступника
Диалог
– He’s tall and muscular, really well-built. – Is he tanned? – He has olive skin which is so smooth and a little bit freckled. – What about his figure? – It’s stunning. He’s a real head turner! – I’m so happy for you! | – Я слышала, у тебя новый парень. Как он выглядит? – Он высокий и мускулистый, очень хорошо сложен. – Он загорелый? – У него оливковая кожа, очень мягкая и немного веснушчатая. – Она сногсшибательная. Он очень привлекательный человек! – Я так за тебя рада! |
Пример сочинения для младших школьников
Caroline is a tall girl. She is thin. She has short got red hair and an oval face. Her eyes are blue and her nose is upturned. She looks charming.
Перевод
Кэролайн — высокая девочка. Она худая. У нее короткие рыжие волосы и овальное лицо. Ее глаза голубые и нос вздернутый. Она выглядит очаровательно.
Пример описания внешности для 5-7 класса
Перевод
Я бы хотел рассказать вам о своей лучшей подруге Лене. Мы знакомы уже много лет. Она — девушка среднего роста с длинными белокурыми волосами. У неё худое и спортивное телосложение. Она худенькая и гибкая. Её кожа светло-кремового цвета. У неё овальная форма лица. У Лены прямой нос и пухлые вздернутые губы. У неё веснушчатое лицо. У Лены очень красивые глаза. Они тёмно-зелёного цвета. Её лицо всегда ласковое и доброжелательное. Она часто улыбается и всегда оптимистична. Лена очень красивая девушка и верный друг.
Описание своей внешности для анкеты
My name is Benjamin. I am very tall. I am 201 cm high. But I am also very thin. My hair is golden and my eyes are blue. I have an aquiline nose and a freckled face. My mom thinks I am handsome and smart.
Перевод
Меня зовут Бенджамин. Я очень высокий. Мой рост – 201 см. Но я также очень худой. У меня золотистые волосы и голубые глаза. У меня орлиный нос и веснушчатое лицо. Моя мама считает меня красивыми умным.
Описание внешности по картинке
This girl is young and beautiful. She has long wavy hair. She is a blonde. She is of an average height and she has a slim figure. She looks very classy and elegant. She’s got a triangle face. This girl has a straight nose. She is wearing a white coctail dress and a stylish bracelet.
Перевод
Это молодая и красивая девушка. У неё длинные волнистые волосы. Она блондинка. Девушка – среднего роста со стройной фигурой. Она выглядит очень модно и изящно. У неё треугольное лицо. Нос прямой. На ней белое коктейльное платье и стильный браслет.
А как вы бы описали свою внешность? Делитесь рассказами в комментариях!
How to describe a person’s appearance in English
Description of a famous person in English. Description of people in English
You will probably need words and phrases to help you compose description of a person’s appearance in English. We advise you to pay attention not only to vocabulary, but also to examples. After all, they can be an excellent base for creating your own proposals.
Words to describe a person’s appearance in English
Let’s start with the most common words for descriptions of a person’s appearance in English. If your friend looks great, then you can please her with the following lexical units: beautiful, pretty, wonderful, attractive, gorgeous, good-looking.
In order to emphasize that a man looks good and not a woman, it is usually used handsome (handsome). You can also use good-looking и attractive. What if you suddenly need to emphasize the opposite? Remember ugly (ugly, ugly) и unsightly
When describing a person’s appearance in English, do not forget to pay attention to the following points:
tall, short, quite tall, medium height
slim, fat, skinny, thin, plump
young, old, middle-aged
round, oval, thin, a double chin, long nose, straight nose, turned up nose
long, short, curly, bald, straight, untidy, haircut, hairdo
a blonde, fair-haired, fair, brown-haired, dark-haired, red, gray
How to describe a person’s appearance in English?
Now let’s pay attention to examples of as can describe a person’s appearance in English.
This is a young man. He is rather attractive. The guy is of medium-height. He looks tired. He has short dark hair. His face is oval. His nose is turned up. The young man is thin. He is dressed neatly. He is wearing jeans, a shirt, a T-shirt and training shoes.
This is a young man. He’s pretty attractive. The guy is of average height. He looks tired. He has short dark hair. Oval face. The nose is turned up. The young man is thin. He is neatly dressed. He’s wearing jeans, a shirt, a T-shirt and sneakers.
You can build a story about a person’s appearance on two main speech structures: classical and more conversational. Let’s consider each of them in more detail.
The classic form of describing a person in English
I am slender. I’m slim.
The topic of the lesson is a description of a person’s appearance, in English it is called personal description [ˈPɜːsnl dɪsˈkrɪpʃən]. After this lesson, try to read a short text about appearance, in English it is Appearance [əˈpɪərəns].
— constructions we are, Tu es, they are;
New words
With this construction, we will describe the appearance of a person. Since our vocabulary is still not very large, we only use words to describe the color of hair, the height of a person, his complexion, and the general impression is whether he is cute in your opinion or not.
First, listen a few times as a native English speaker describes the appearance (as always, do not be lazy to repeat after him):
Now look at the pictures below. There are two pairs of people here: Judy [ˈʤuːdi] and Sat [sæm], Eric [ˈƐrɪk] and Alice [ˈÆlɪs].
Describe these people using the new words and patterns below.
_________ _________ Sam’s friend, Eric
He is _________ and _________
He is Alice’s _________.
He is _________ _________ good-looking.
Check your answers against the video at the end of the article. While your answers don’t necessarily have to match this video, you can have your own opinions about other people’s physical appearance.
Pronunciation table of possessive endings
| Judy’s | Mary’s | Joe’s | Harry’s | /z/ |
| Sam’s | Bob’s | Anne’s | Susan’s | /z/ |
| Eric’s | Margaret’s | Jeff’s | Kate’s | /s/ |
| Alice’s | Joyce’s | Ross’s | Des’s | /iz/ |
Designs we are, Tu es, they are
Moreover, affirmative, interrogative and negative sentences are built in English according to the following clear schemes:
| Statementthe pronoun comes first | Questionin the first place is the verb | Denialpronoun, verb and then negation |
| we are (we’re) | are we? | we are not (we aren’t) |
| you are (you’re) | are you? | you are not (you aren’t) |
| they are (they’re) | are they? | they are not (they aren’t) |
In brackets are short forms that are very widely used in English. Check your pronunciation.
Personal description exercises
1. Remember people who are somewhat similar to you, and using the construction we are, describe you together.
Example:
We are young.
We are not very tall.
We are Russian. We are not Brazilian.
2. Write about two of your comrades. Example:
Alina and Kate are short, slim and fair. They are young and good-looking.
Description of the child in English. Description of a person’s appearance in English
You will probably need words and phrases to help you compose description of a person’s appearance in English. We advise you to pay attention not only to vocabulary, but also to examples. After all, they can be an excellent base for creating your own proposals.
Asking a question about a person’s character
To invite the interlocutor to describe someone’s character in English, two phrases are most often used:
English adjectives that characterize a person
All adjectives describing the character can be conditionally divided into several groups, depending on the specific side of the personality.
Attitude to life
The most general group that allows you to describe the mood and view of the world. Includes the qualities of a person in English shown in the table below.
Intellectual abilities
A character description in English may relate to the level of intelligence and thinking of a person. You can use the adjectives in the table below to communicate this side of your personality in a positive way.
There are also many words in English for negative characterization.
Attitude towards people
Describing a person’s character from the point of view of attitudes towards other people means knowing more than a dozen relevant adjectives. For comfortable perception and memorization, they are preferred to be presented in the form of a table of antonyms. Below are the most important traits for memorizing in English with translation.
| friendly / unfriendly | friendly / unfriendly, hostile |
| kind / malicious, mean | kind angry |
| affable, amiable / severe | friendly, amiable / tough, stern, unfriendly |
| warm / cool-tempered, hard-nosed | warm, pleasant, friendly / tough, unfriendly |
| cute, cuddly, good / ugly | |
| generous / greedy, avid | generous / greedy |
Enjoy learning English online with Puzzle English for free
Every person at least once in his life has heard compliments addressed to him about his appearance or character. And, you see, it’s terribly nice. Being able to describe yourself or the appearance of another person is one of the classic topics in English, which sooner or later all language learners face.
In this article, we will analyze in detail such a question as a description of a person’s appearance in English with a detailed translation, as well as learn about popular English adjectives that characterize a person. And as a bonus, we will learn a few nice compliments that will come in handy in everyday communication.
Person’s appearance
The main «tool» in describing a person’s appearance is adjectives and epithets. The more varied your vocabulary in this area, the more accurately and in detail you will be able to describe another person or yourself.
If you are asked to describe your appearance, you will most likely be asked the question “What do you look?«(How do you look?) Or»How would you describe your physical appearance?«(How would you describe your appearance?).
When describing your appearance, you should not go deep into details such as the shape of the eyebrows or the shape of the eyes. Usually, when asked to talk about how you look, they mean the following criteria: complexion, figure, height, skin color, hair, eyes, and other common features.
Remember that if at the interview you are asked to describe yourself (How would you describe yourself?), then we will not talk about appearance, but about personal and working qualities.
If you are asked a question about the appearance of another person (for example, they are asked to describe a girl or a guy you like), then the question will be “What does he / she look?» (How he / she looks?). This is where you can describe the appearance in more detail using vivid epithets that will convey the image of a person as accurately as possible in words.
For example: He is very strong for his age (He is very strong for his age) or She is rather tall for a teenager (She’s tall enough for a teenager.)
And now let’s go directly to the adjectives, which describe a person’s appearance in English. In different categories, you may come across the same words, but with different translations depending on the context associated with them.
Build (physique)
Each of us has his own unique gait, by which you can recognize a person from a crowd, even from the back or from afar. In English, as in Russian, there are many epithets to describe a person’s gait style:
Gait (gait)
Now let’s move on to the words that can describe the parts of the human body.
Arms and legs
The palms and hands in general are often called the “business card of a person”, and when they shake hands they make up the first impression. There are many ways to describe a person’s palms:
Hands (palms and fingers)
The color and condition of the skin of both the face and the whole body is also often used when describing a person in English.
There are many adjectives to describe hair. We will not go deep into the nuances of hairstyles, but tell you about adjectives that can describe the general condition and color of a person’s hair.
Hair color
Do not forget about men who, in addition to hair on their heads, like to grow a luxurious mustache or a long beard. Facial hair is collectively called facial hair.
Mustache and beard (mustache and beard)
Remember that although in Russian the word «mustache» is a plural, in English the word mustache is used only in this form, be it one mustache or a mustache entirely.
Let’s move on to describing the face and parts of the face such as lips, nose, eyes, etc.
Face shape
The auxiliary word «-faced» will help describe a person’s face when answering the question «What is he?» Let’s say «broad-faced» is broad-faced, «pale-faced» is pale-faced, and so on.
Forehead (forehead)
All the same adjectives are used to describe the forehead as for other parts of the body. For example: wide, narrow, high and others. Use the adjective furrowed or wrinkled when referring to a «wrinkled» forehead.
Eyebrows
A colossal number of adjectives and epithets have been invented to describe the eyes, because they are the mirror of the soul and can say so much about a person.
Description of the girl in English with translation. Description of appearance in English
All English learners sooner or later face the need to describe a person’s appearance: their own or that of a friend. The English language has a huge number of words that help us accurately describe a person’s appearance. Wondering how to tell in English that a person has blue eyes, an aquiline nose, or golden hair? Then the article is a must-read!
Height and body build
Let’s start with height and physique. Be careful in your choice of words, some of the following may sound offensive. So, for example, if a person is too thin, instead of skinny (skinny) tell thin (thin), and if a person is overweight, then instead of fetus (thick) or obese (obese) say a bit overweight (slightly overweight).
WordTranslation
| shorts | low |
| (of) medium height | middle-height |
| tall | tall |
| lathy | lanky |
| well built | well built |
| slim | slender (about a woman) |
| slender | slim (about a man) |
| thin | thin |
| neat | elegant |
| looking | miniature |
| skinny | skinny |
| read | thin |
| muscular | muscular |
| ungainly | full, plump |
| Overweight | overweight |
| fetus | fat |
| obese | obese |
| stout | fat |
| stocky | stocky |
After growth and physique, we usually continue to describe a person from top to bottom, that is, further we will talk about what kind of hair people have. Word hair used with the singular verb: hair is.
Speaking of hair, we describe it according to three criteria: color (color), length (length) and form (s). Don’t forget to also mention the presence of bangs (a fringe), if any.
Girls often braid their hair (to braid), tucked into the tail (to make a ponytail) or simply dissolve (to wear one’s hair loose).
WordTranslation
| auburn | auburn |
| black | Black |
| blonde | bright |
| RED | redheads |
| grey | gray-haired |
| chestnut, chestnut brown | chestnut |
| golden | golden |
| long | long |
| shorts | short |
| shoulder length | on the shoulders |
| waist length | waist-high |
| soon | bald |
| straight | direct |
| wow | wavy |
| curly | curly |
When describing a person’s appearance in English, great attention should be paid to the face (make). In form, it can be:
It is also important to remember about skin color (a complexion). By the way, don’t confuse the word complexion with our «complexion», which translates into English as body build.
WordTranslation
| dark | dark |
| fair | bright |
| olive | olive |
| pale | pale |
| tanning | tanned |
| dry | dry |
| silky | silky |
| smooth | smooth |
| baby soft | gentle like a child |
| rough | rough |
| rudy | ruddy (about the face) |
| freckled | freckled |
| wrinkled | wrinkled |
Description of appearance in English: tables with adjectives and examples of descriptions of appearance
The topic «Description of a person’s appearance» may seem frivolous to you and, perhaps, childish, but you cannot miss it. In the process of communicating in English, you will have situations that require you to describe what a particular person looks like. This topic is not bypassed on the TOEFL, IELTS, etc.
What if you want to place your profile on an international dating site? This is where the skills of describing the appearance, even of yourself, come in handy.
Overall Impression
The description of appearance in English should begin with a description of the general impression of the person. Most often this is preceded by questions:
The general impression that a person makes is always either positive or negative:
How to describe a face
Before you start describing facial features, brush up on the necessary vocabulary:
When we talk about a person’s eyes, we mean not only the color, but also the shape, «fit», the look itself. Use the following vocabulary:
| Word | Transfer |
| brown | brown |
| hazel | light brown |
| blue | голубые |
| grey | gray |
| amber | amber |
| green | green |
| pale | bright |
| dark | dark |
| close-set eyes | close-set eyes |
| wide-set eyes | wide eyes |
How to describe your appearance in English
The appearance of oneself and others is a constant topic of discussion, conversation, and stories from relatives and friends. Another situation is a meeting with a stranger. To recognize him among the passengers, they describe first of all their clothes and appearance. And if a connoisseur of beauty and ended up in an art gallery, then you can discuss a portrait of a person with a foreign friend. For all these life situations, of course, you just need to know the vocabulary (and there are many) on the topic of appearance in English.
Adjectives about growth (height / stature) of a person
My cousin is tall and he is always wearing short trousers. It isn’t nice! My cousin tall and always wears short pants. It’s not beautiful!
To strengthen these adjectives and decorate speech, before the adjectives describing the appearance, you can put:
Adjectives about figure
Human face
Now let’s move on to the description human face.
There are many nationalities on our planet with different skin and face color. Let’s learn to call them correctly.
When frightened, a person may turn pale.
How to describe appearance in English: definitions and examples
Describing physical appearance in English is extremely difficult. It is necessary not just to say in a nutshell whether a person is attractive or not, but to describe all the outstanding features of his face. To do this, you need to know certain words, their correct use and translation. This article is a kind of guide with examples and translation, with which you can easily characterize the appearance of any person.
How to describe a person’s face (eyes, hair, skin color, etc.)
To describe a person’s face in detail, you need to know a lot of English words. After all, we must tell what shape a person’s eyes have, what color they are, whether his nose is large or small, and so on. Everything in order.
Leather
You can see the options for skin colors in the table.
Face shape
hair color:
hair type:
Appearance in English
Studying English, each of us at some stage is faced with the need to describe the appearance of a person: ourselves or a friend, an acquaintance or a stranger. And if you started learning English in courses (or earlier, at school), you are well aware that this «topic» is one of the first conversational topics (And how the class laughed when someone confused the words eyes and ears, when they wanted to say in English “She had big blue eyes?” Eh, those were golden days).
The ability to correctly and fully describe a person’s appearance (physical appearance or, less formally, looks) is very valuable both in itself and from the point of view of organizers of all kinds of exams for English proficiency (TOEFL, IELTS and others like them). Without mastering this topic, you can hardly win the examiner’s heart: the story or essay “About myself” has become a classic exam topic.
Do you want to impress examiners (friends, colleagues, grandmother, girl) with the knowledge of an incredible number of epithets describing a person’s appearance? Read on!
About yourself, beloved
So you were asked the question:
What do you look? (What do you look like?) Or
How would you describe your physical appearance? (How would you describe your appearance?)
Alas, in a story about your own appearance, it is not customary to describe in detail the expression of the eyes and the shape of the eyebrows, the graceful posture and the spectacular gait. Describe your appearance in general terms, as they say, in broad strokes: hair color, eyes and skin, height and complexion. You can also add a few words about what style of dress you prefer.
Keep in mind that a very similar question is asked during a job interview: How would you describe yourself? It, however, refers to your emotional-strong-willed and business qualities: in response, you must indicate your «strengths», that is, personal and professional characteristics that will help you succeed at work.
Describing a person’s appearance in English
But if you were asked a question:
How does he / she look? (What does he / she look like?) Or
How do they look? (How do they look?),
you can apply a much wider range of definitions (see later in our article).
First (classic):
| Pronoun | + to be | + sign | |
| (verb in personal form) | (adjective) | ||
| I | (I) | am | tall. |
| He, she | (He she) | is | tall. |
| You, we, they | (You, you, we, they) | are | tall. |
| I am slender. | I’m slim. |
| She is short. | She is not tall. |
| He is slightly overweight. | He’s a little overweight. |
The second (more typical for the conversational style):
| Pronoun | + to have got | + sign | |
| (verb in personal form) | |||
| I | (I) | have got (abbreviated: ‘ve got) | big blue eyes. |
| He, she | (He she) | has got (abbreviated: ‘s got) | big blue eyes. |
| You, we, they | (You, you, we, they) | have got (abbreviated: ‘ve got) | big blue eyes. |
| I got red hair (or I’ve got red hair). | I have red hair. |
| She has got green eyes (or She’s got green eyes). | She has green eyes. |
| He has got a beer belly (or He’s got a beer belly). | He has a beer belly. |
In our article «Names of parts of the human body in English» you will find not only the names of body parts and human organs, but also 10 funny «body» idioms.
| She is rather tall. | It’s pretty high. |
| He is very strong. | He is very strong. |
Sing it, friends! Children’s song about how to describe yourself and your friend:
In English, there are a huge number of epithets with which you can describe a person’s appearance.
Next, we give a fairly extensive list of all kinds of characteristics of the human body. Use this vocabulary to expand your vocabulary: it will come in handy not only in oral speech when you need to describe yourself or another person, but also when writing an English essay on the topic «About yourself», «About a friend» or «Appearance of a person.»
| Bony | Bony |
| lanky, lanky | Skinny |
| Long | Long |
| Rounded | Rounded |
| Shorts | Short |
| well-shaped | Embossed, well-defined |
Each of us is a work of art
Today we will learn the description of appearance in English. Often, when we communicate with someone, we describe some objects or people. When communicating in English, it is also important to be able to express your opinion beautifully and competently. The more detailed and colorful you can describe an object or person, the more clearly your interlocutor will be able to present it. Sometimes such details as the shape of the cheeks, nose, lips, smile can tell a lot about a person, making his verbal portrait complete and vivid.
Physical appearance can be
Very often we talk about appearance in general, expressing our opinion about how a person looks: is he attractive, pretty, repulsive. Let’s look at some English words that will help you express your opinion about a person’s appearance.
And here, by the way, is a very interesting word that is easy to remember:
And there are people from whom it is impossible to look away. At the same time, sometimes you cannot even call them handsome / beauties, but there is something in their appearance that is charming, attractive. Such people can be called:
A person can have an ordinary appearance:
Facial features in English
Let’s take a look at how you can describe the facial features of a person as a whole.
There are people whose features look very beautiful and harmonious:
Also, facial features can be «wrong», but a person can look very beautiful at the same time:
And there are people who look impressive, usually such people have a strong-willed chin, well-defined cheekbones:
A man or woman may even look stern. For example, if they have thick eyebrows, a protruding chin, grooves at the eyebrows:
Facial features can be large or small:
And there are people with very expressive appearance:
Eyebrows and eyelashes
Eyelashes and eyebrows are like frames for the eyes, they add character and expressiveness to the look.
Eyebrows can be:
Eyelashes:
How to make a beautiful and correct description of a person in English?
By Natalia Mar 8, 2019
Describing a person in detail is a rather difficult task to complete even in the native language. Describing physical appearance in English seems like an overwhelming task for learners of this foreign language due to the lack of vocabulary and imagination.
Hair color
The color gamut in English is quite wide and its description does not only consist of basic colors. What adjectives can you use to describe a person’s hair color in English?
| Ash blonde | ashy |
| black | Black |
| blonde | bright |
| blond (e) | blond / blonde |
| brown, chestnut | chestnut |
| brunette | brunette / brunette |
| dark | dark |
| dyed | dyed |
| fair | fair-haired |
| golden | golden |
| gray, silvery | gray-haired |
| grizzled | gray |
| jet black | pitch black |
| red, reddish | redheads |
| flaxen | straw |
Sample sentences:
Male haircuts
Here we will consider basic men’s haircuts and beard options for description in English with equivalents in Russian:
| bald head | bald |
| crew out | «Hedgehog» |
| flat top | |
| long hair | long hair |
| receding hair line | bald patches |
| shaved head | trimmed bald |
| sideburn | whiskers |
| spikey | stiff, protruding hair |
| Beard | |
| beard | beard |
| clean-shaved | smooth-shaven (about the beard) |
| dreads | dreadlocks |
| goatee | goatee |
| mustache | mustache |
| stubble | stubble |
Examples of descriptions of men’s haircuts in English:
Women’s haircuts and hairstyles
A huge variety of women’s hairstyles and haircuts for descriptions in English are shown in the table below:
| bang | bang |
| bobbed | short cropped |
| shingled | |
| braids | spit |
| please | |
| good | bundle |
| chignon | chignon |
| cornrows | african braids |
| curly | curly |
| forelock | forelock |
| french braid | french braid |
| french twist | french knot |
| layered hair | cascade |
| perm | perm (chemical) |
| pigtails | ponytails |
| pony tail | ponytail |
| shoulder length | shoulder length hair |
Ways to describe women’s haircuts in English:
Teeth
It is difficult to present a description without teeth, because it is the teeth that make a person’s appearance memorable.
In English, the words below are often used:
| close set | frequent |
| Even | even |
| uneven | uneven |
| large | big |
| small | small |
| tiny | |
| Sparse | rare |
| set of teeth | row of teeth |
| front teeth | front teeth |
| molar teeth | permanent teeth |
Examples of the use of this vocabulary when describing teeth in English:
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Appearance. English words on the topic «Appearance». List # 1 (for beginners)
These English words will help you learn how to describe appearance in English. It can be a person or some kind of creature. And colloquial phrases on the topic «Appearance» will help you ask questions and keep the conversation going.
So, we will learn to answer simple questions on this topic, which are divided into two groups and learn to describe a person’s appearance in English:
Description of a person’s appearance in English
If you want to know what does a person look likethen ask the following questions:
You need to answer these questions something like this:
1. Appearance. Appearance (general impression)
So let’s get familiar with the vocabulary. But first, check yourself.
Task 1. Remember the words on the topic Appearance. Human face.
First we need to learn the words, and then we will learn to make up descriptions of different people. By the way, your vocabulary should increase by 30 words.
Appearance. Appearance. English words for beginners (list number 1)
Verbs:
Don’t confuse expressions with a verb:
Adjectives (general impression):
To answer, use construction with the verb BE:
I am
She / He is
The person’s appearance and the nature of the exercise in English. Description of appearance in English: examples
You will probably need words and phrases to help you compose description of a person’s appearance in English. We advise you to pay attention not only to vocabulary, but also to examples. After all, they can be an excellent base for creating your own proposals.
How to describe your appearance in English
Description of the girl in English with translation. Description of appearance in English
All English learners sooner or later face the need to describe a person’s appearance: their own or that of a friend. The English language has a huge number of words that help us accurately describe a person’s appearance. Wondering how to tell in English that a person has blue eyes, an aquiline nose, or golden hair? Then the article is a must-read!
Height and body build
Let’s start with height and physique. Be careful in your choice of words, some of the following may sound offensive. So, for example, if a person is too thin, instead of skinny (skinny) tell thin (thin), and if a person is overweight, then instead of fetus (thick) or obese (obese) say a bit overweight (slightly overweight).
WordTranslation
| short | low |
| (of) medium height | middle-height |
| tall | tall |
| lathy | lanky |
| well built | well built |
| slim | slender (about a woman) |
| slender | slim (about a man) |
| thin | thin |
| neat | elegant |
| looking | miniature |
| skinny | skinny |
| read | thin |
| muscular | muscular |
| ungainly | full, plump |
| Overweight | overweight |
| fetus | fat |
| obese | obese |
| stout | fat |
| stocky | stocky |
After growth and physique, we usually continue to describe a person from top to bottom, that is, further we will talk about what kind of hair people have. Word hair used with the singular verb: hair is.
Speaking of hair, we describe it according to three criteria: color (color), length (length) and form (s). Don’t forget to also mention the presence of bangs (a fringe), if any.
Girls often braid their hair (to braid), tucked into the tail (to make a ponytail) or simply dissolve (to wear one’s hair loose).
WordTranslation
| auburn | auburn |
| black | Black |
| blonde | bright |
| RED | redheads |
| grey | gray-haired |
| chestnut, chestnut brown | chestnut |
| golden | golden |
| long | long |
| short | short |
| shoulder length | on the shoulders |
| waist length | waist-high |
| soon | bald |
| straight | direct |
| wow | wavy |
| curly | curly |
When describing a person’s appearance in English, great attention should be paid to the face (make). In form, it can be:
It is also important to remember about skin color (a complexion). By the way, don’t confuse the word complexion with our «complexion», which translates into English as body build.
WordTranslation
| dark | dark |
| fair | bright |
| olive | olive |
| pale | pale |
| tanning | tanned |
| dry | dry |
| silky | silky |
| smooth | smooth |
| baby soft | gentle like a child |
| rough | rough |
| rudy | ruddy (about the face) |
| freckled | freckled |
| wrinkled | wrinkled |
A source: https://arsochi.ru/kaleidoscope/description-of-the-girl-in-english-with-translation-description-of-appearance-in-english.html
Each of us is a work of art
Today we will learn the description of appearance in English. Often, when we communicate with someone, we describe some objects or people. When communicating in English, it is also important to be able to express your opinion beautifully and competently. The more detailed and colorful you can describe an object or person, the more clearly your interlocutor will be able to present it. Sometimes such details as the shape of the cheeks, nose, lips, smile can tell a lot about a person, making his verbal portrait complete and vivid.
Physical appearance can be
Very often we talk about appearance in general, expressing our opinion about how a person looks: is he attractive, pretty, repulsive. Let’s look at some English words that will help you express your opinion about a person’s appearance.
And here, by the way, is a very interesting word that is easy to remember:
And there are people from whom it is impossible to look away. At the same time, sometimes you cannot even call them handsome / beauties, but there is something in their appearance that is charming, attractive. Such people can be called:
A person can have an ordinary appearance:
Facial features in English
Let’s take a look at how you can describe the facial features of a person as a whole.
There are people whose features look very beautiful and harmonious:
Also, facial features can be «wrong», but a person can look very beautiful at the same time:
And there are people who look impressive, usually such people have a strong-willed chin, well-defined cheekbones:
A man or woman may even look stern. For example, if they have thick eyebrows, a protruding chin, grooves at the eyebrows:
Facial features can be large or small:
And there are people with very expressive appearance:
The eyes are the first thing we pay attention to when we look at a person. They, and the way a person looks, tells us a lot, it is not for nothing that they say that the eyes are the mirror of the soul.
It’s amazing what a huge variety of eye colors there are. At first glance, it may only seem that a person’s eyes are just blue or brown, but in fact, if you look closely, there are many shades of blue, green, brown, etc. What’s even more surprising: eye color can change with the change of seasons, change of day and night, mood, with age, and many more factors affect how our eye color changes.
We suggest considering the name of the basic colors in English:
But if the eyes are completely dark, almost black they are called Dark | dɑːk |;
And there are people who have a very beautiful eye color of a warm shade, reminiscent of amber:
And there are eyes of a beautiful brown color, a velvety shade, this color is called:
Interestingly, despite the fact that gray seems to us a completely normal eye color, people with pure gray eyes are rare. Most often, people have gray-blue eyes, gray-green, etc.
Pure green eye color is also rare:
Now let’s look at what the shape of the eyes can be:
There are people in whose eyes indomitable vitality and fervor are read, such eyes can be called:
Naturally, a person laughs or pretends to be funny, you can determine by the wrinkles near the eyes:
And if a person leads an unhealthy lifestyle or simply did not get enough sleep, his eyes may be:
Eyebrows and eyelashes
Eyelashes and eyebrows are like frames for the eyes, they add character and expressiveness to the look.
Eyebrows can be:
Eyelashes:
A source: https://tryeng.ru/2683
How to describe appearance in English: definitions and examples
Describing physical appearance in English is extremely difficult. It is necessary not just to say in a nutshell whether a person is attractive or not, but to describe all the outstanding features of his face. To do this, you need to know certain words, their correct use and translation. This article is a kind of guide with examples and translation, with which you can easily characterize the appearance of any person.
How to describe a person’s face (eyes, hair, skin color, etc.)
To describe a person’s face in detail, you need to know a lot of English words. After all, we must tell what shape a person’s eyes have, what color they are, whether his nose is large or small, and so on. Everything in order.
Leather
You can see the options for skin colors in the table.
Face shape
hair color:
hair type:
A source: https://english-bird.ru/opisanie-vneshnosti-na-anglijskom-yazyke/
Description of appearance in English: tables with adjectives and examples of descriptions of appearance
The topic «Description of a person’s appearance» may seem frivolous to you and, perhaps, childish, but you cannot miss it. In the process of communicating in English, you will have situations that require you to describe what a particular person looks like. This topic is not bypassed on the TOEFL, IELTS, etc.
What if you want to place your profile on an international dating site? This is where the skills of describing the appearance, even of yourself, come in handy.
Overall Impression
The description of appearance in English should begin with a description of the general impression of the person. Most often this is preceded by questions:
The general impression that a person makes is always either positive or negative:
How to describe a face
Before you start describing facial features, brush up on the necessary vocabulary:
How to make a beautiful and correct description of a person in English?
By Natalia Mar 8, 2019
Describing a person in detail is a rather difficult task to complete even in the native language. Describing physical appearance in English seems like an overwhelming task for learners of this foreign language due to the lack of vocabulary and imagination.
Hair color
The color gamut in English is quite wide and its description does not only consist of basic colors. What adjectives can you use to describe a person’s hair color in English?
| Ash blonde | ashy |
| black | Black |
| blonde | bright |
| blond (e) | blond / blonde |
| brown, chestnut | chestnut |
| brunette | brunette / brunette |
| dark | dark |
| dyed | dyed |
| fair | fair-haired |
| golden | golden |
| gray, silvery | gray-haired |
| grizzled | gray |
| jet black | pitch black |
| red, reddish | redheads |
| flaxen | straw |
Sample sentences:
Male haircuts
Here we will consider basic men’s haircuts and beard options for description in English with equivalents in Russian:
| bald head | bald |
| crew out | «Hedgehog» |
| flat top | |
| long hair | long hair |
| receding hair line | bald patches |
| shaved head | trimmed bald |
| sideburn | whiskers |
| spikey | stiff, protruding hair |
| Beard | |
| beard | beard |
| clean-shaved | smooth-shaven (about the beard) |
| dreads | dreadlocks |
| goatee | goatee |
| mustache | mustache |
| stubble | stubble |
Examples of descriptions of men’s haircuts in English:
Women’s haircuts and hairstyles
A huge variety of women’s hairstyles and haircuts for descriptions in English are shown in the table below:
| bang | bang |
| bobbed | short cropped |
| shingled | |
| braids | spit |
| please | |
| good | bundle |
| chignon | chignon |
| cornrows | african braids |
| curly | curly |
| forelock | forelock |
| french braid | french braid |
| french twist | french knot |
| layered hair | cascade |
| perm | perm (chemical) |
| pigtails | ponytails |
| pony tail | ponytail |
| shoulder length | shoulder length hair |
Ways to describe women’s haircuts in English:
Teeth
It is difficult to present a description without teeth, because it is the teeth that make a person’s appearance memorable.
In English, the words below are often used:
| close set | frequent |
| Even | even |
| uneven | uneven |
| large | big |
| small | small |
| tiny | |
| Sparse | rare |
| set of teeth | row of teeth |
| front teeth | front teeth |
| molar teeth | permanent teeth |
Examples of the use of this vocabulary when describing teeth in English:
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Appearance in English
Studying English, each of us at some stage is faced with the need to describe the appearance of a person: ourselves or a friend, an acquaintance or a stranger. And if you started learning English in courses (or earlier, at school), you are well aware that this «topic» is one of the first conversational topics (And how the class laughed when someone confused the words eyes and ears, when they wanted to say in English “She had big blue eyes?” Eh, those were golden days).
The ability to correctly and fully describe a person’s appearance (physical appearance or, less formally, looks) is very valuable both in itself and from the point of view of organizers of all kinds of exams for English proficiency (TOEFL, IELTS and others like them). Without mastering this topic, you can hardly win the examiner’s heart: the story or essay “About myself” has become a classic exam topic.
Do you want to impress examiners (friends, colleagues, grandmother, girl) with the knowledge of an incredible number of epithets describing a person’s appearance? Read on!
About yourself, beloved
So you were asked the question:
What do you look? (What do you look like?) Or
How would you describe your physical appearance? (How would you describe your appearance?)
Alas, in a story about your own appearance, it is not customary to describe in detail the expression of the eyes and the shape of the eyebrows, the graceful posture and the spectacular gait. Describe your appearance in general terms, as they say, in broad strokes: hair color, eyes and skin, height and complexion. You can also add a few words about what style of dress you prefer.
Keep in mind that a very similar question is asked during a job interview: How would you describe yourself? It, however, refers to your emotional-strong-willed and business qualities: in response, you must indicate your «strengths», that is, personal and professional characteristics that will help you succeed at work.
Describing a person’s appearance in English
But if you were asked a question:
How does he / she look? (What does he / she look like?) Or
How do they look? (How do they look?),
you can apply a much wider range of definitions (see later in our article).
First (classic):
| Pronoun | + to be | + sign | |
| (verb in personal form) | (adjective) | ||
| I | (I) | am | tall. |
| He, she | (He she) | is | tall. |
| You, we, they | (You, you, we, they) | are | tall. |
| I am slender. | I’m slim. |
| She is short. | She is not tall. |
| He is slightly overweight. | He’s a little overweight. |
The second (more typical for the conversational style):
| Pronoun | + to have got | + sign | |
| (verb in personal form) | |||
| I | (I) | have got (abbreviated: ‘ve got) | big blue eyes. |
| He, she | (He she) | has got (abbreviated: ‘s got) | big blue eyes. |
| You, we, they | (You, you, we, they) | have got (abbreviated: ‘ve got) | big blue eyes. |
| I got red hair (or I’ve got red hair). | I have red hair. |
| She has got green eyes (or She’s got green eyes). | She has green eyes. |
| He has got a beer belly (or He’s got a beer belly). | He has a beer belly. |
In our article «Names of parts of the human body in English» you will find not only the names of body parts and human organs, but also 10 funny «body» idioms.
| She is rather tall. | It’s pretty high. |
| He is very strong. | He is very strong. |
Sing it, friends! Children’s song about how to describe yourself and your friend:
In English, there are a huge number of epithets with which you can describe a person’s appearance.
Next, we give a fairly extensive list of all kinds of characteristics of the human body. Use this vocabulary to expand your vocabulary: it will come in handy not only in oral speech when you need to describe yourself or another person, but also when writing an English essay on the topic «About yourself», «About a friend» or «Appearance of a person.»
| Bony | Bony |
| lanky, lanky | Skinny |
| Long | Long |
| Rounded | Rounded |
| Shorts | Short |
| well-shaped | Embossed, well-defined |
A source: https://skyeng.ru/articles/rasskazhi-mne-o-sebe-opisanie-vneshnosti-cheloveka-na-anglijskom-yazyke
Enjoy learning English online with Puzzle English for free
Every person at least once in his life has heard compliments addressed to him about his appearance or character. And, you see, it’s terribly nice. Being able to describe yourself or the appearance of another person is one of the classic topics in English, which sooner or later all language learners face.
In this article, we will analyze in detail such a question as a description of a person’s appearance in English with a detailed translation, as well as learn about popular English adjectives that characterize a person. And as a bonus, we will learn a few nice compliments that will come in handy in everyday communication.
Person’s appearance
The main «tool» in describing a person’s appearance is adjectives and epithets. The more varied your vocabulary in this area, the more accurately and in detail you will be able to describe another person or yourself.
If you are asked to describe your appearance, you will most likely be asked the question “What do you look?«(How do you look?) Or»How would you describe your physical appearance?«(How would you describe your appearance?).
When describing your appearance, you should not go deep into details such as the shape of the eyebrows or the shape of the eyes. Usually, when asked to talk about how you look, they mean the following criteria: complexion, figure, height, skin color, hair, eyes, and other common features.
Remember that if at the interview you are asked to describe yourself (How would you describe yourself?), then we will not talk about appearance, but about personal and working qualities.
If you are asked a question about the appearance of another person (for example, they are asked to describe a girl or a guy you like), then the question will be “What does he / she look?» (How he / she looks?). This is where you can describe the appearance in more detail using vivid epithets that will convey the image of a person as accurately as possible in words.
For example: He is very strong for his age (He is very strong for his age) or She is rather tall for a teenager (She’s tall enough for a teenager.)
And now let’s go directly to the adjectives, which describe a person’s appearance in English. In different categories, you may come across the same words, but with different translations depending on the context associated with them.
Build (physique)
Each of us has his own unique gait, by which you can recognize a person from a crowd, even from the back or from afar. In English, as in Russian, there are many epithets to describe a person’s gait style:
Gait (gait)
Now let’s move on to the words that can describe the parts of the human body.
Arms and legs
The palms and hands in general are often called the “business card of a person”, and when they shake hands they make up the first impression. There are many ways to describe a person’s palms:
Hands (palms and fingers)
The color and condition of the skin of both the face and the whole body is also often used when describing a person in English.
There are many adjectives to describe hair. We will not go deep into the nuances of hairstyles, but tell you about adjectives that can describe the general condition and color of a person’s hair.
Hair color
Do not forget about men who, in addition to hair on their heads, like to grow a luxurious mustache or a long beard. Facial hair is collectively called facial hair.
Mustache and beard (mustache and beard)
Remember that although in Russian the word «mustache» is a plural, in English the word mustache is used only in this form, be it one mustache or a mustache entirely.
Let’s move on to describing the face and parts of the face such as lips, nose, eyes, etc.
Face shape
The auxiliary word «-faced» will help describe a person’s face when answering the question «What is he?» Let’s say «broad-faced» is broad-faced, «pale-faced» is pale-faced, and so on.
Forehead (forehead)
All the same adjectives are used to describe the forehead as for other parts of the body. For example: wide, narrow, high and others. Use the adjective furrowed or wrinkled when referring to a «wrinkled» forehead.
Eyebrows
A colossal number of adjectives and epithets have been invented to describe the eyes, because they are the mirror of the soul and can say so much about a person.
A source: https://puzzle-english.com/directory/describing-appearance
The topic of the lesson is a description of a person’s appearance, in English it is called personal description [ˈPɜːsnl dɪsˈkrɪpʃən]. After this lesson, try to read a short text about appearance, in English it is Appearance [əˈpɪərəns].
— constructions we are, Tu es, they are;
New words
With this construction, we will describe the appearance of a person. Since our vocabulary is still not very large, we only use words to describe the color of hair, the height of a person, his complexion, and the general impression is whether he is cute in your opinion or not.
First, listen a few times as a native English speaker describes the appearance (as always, do not be lazy to repeat after him):
Now look at the pictures below. There are two pairs of people here: Judy [ˈʤuːdi] and Sat [sæm], Eric [ˈƐrɪk] and Alice [ˈÆlɪs].
Describe these people using the new words and patterns below.
_________ _________ Sam’s friend, Eric
He is _________ and _________
He is Alice’s _________.
He is _________ _________ good-looking.
Check your answers against the video at the end of the article. While your answers don’t necessarily have to match this video, you can have your own opinions about other people’s physical appearance.
Pronunciation table of possessive endings
| Judy’s | Mary’s | Joe’s | Harry’s | /z/ |
| Sam’s | Bob’s | Anne’s | Susan’s | /z/ |
| Eric’s | Margaret’s | Jeff’s | Kate’s | /s/ |
| Alice’s | Joyce’s | Ross’s | Des’s | /iz/ |
Designs we are, Tu es, they are
Moreover, affirmative, interrogative and negative sentences are built in English according to the following clear schemes:
| Statementthe pronoun comes first | Questionin the first place is the verb | Denialpronoun, verb and then negation |
| we are (we’re) | are we? | we are not (we aren’t) |
| you are (you’re) | are you? | you are not (you aren’t) |
| they are (they’re) | are they? | they are not (they aren’t) |
In brackets are short forms that are very widely used in English. Check your pronunciation.
Personal description exercises
1. Remember people who are somewhat similar to you, and using the construction we are, describe you together.
Example:
We are young.
We are not very tall.
We are Russian. We are not Brazilian.
2. Write about two of your comrades. Example:
Alina and Kate are short, slim and fair. They are young and good-looking.
A source: https://lingvana.ru/personal-description.html
Appearance. English words on the topic «Appearance». List # 1 (for beginners)
These English words will help you learn how to describe appearance in English. It can be a person or some kind of creature. And colloquial phrases on the topic «Appearance» will help you ask questions and keep the conversation going.
So, we will learn to answer simple questions on this topic, which are divided into two groups and learn to describe a person’s appearance in English:
Description of a person’s appearance in English
If you want to know what does a person look likethen ask the following questions:
You need to answer these questions something like this:
1. Appearance. Appearance (general impression)
So let’s get familiar with the vocabulary. But first, check yourself.
Task 1. Remember the words on the topic Appearance. Human face.
First we need to learn the words, and then we will learn to make up descriptions of different people. By the way, your vocabulary should increase by 30 words.
Appearance. Appearance. English words for beginners (list number 1)
Verbs:
Don’t confuse expressions with a verb:
Adjectives (general impression):
To answer, use construction with the verb BE:
I am
She / He is
A source: http://englishinn.ru/appearance-ili-kak-opisat-vneshnost-na-angliyskom-yazyike.html
Tell Me About Yourself: Describing a person’s appearance in English
How to describe yourself or a friend in English? Eye, hair and skin color, complexion and gait. Vocabulary on the topic «Human appearance» with illustrations, translation and examples.
Classic theme: description of appearance
Studying English, each of us at some stage is faced with the need to describe the appearance of a person: ourselves or a friend, an acquaintance or a stranger. And if you started learning English in courses (or earlier, at school), you are well aware that this «topic» is one of the first conversational topics (And how the class laughed when someone confused the words eyes and ears, when they wanted to say in English “She had big blue eyes?” Eh, those were golden days).
The ability to correctly and fully describe a person’s appearance (physical appearance or, less formally, looks) is very valuable both in itself and from the point of view of organizers of all kinds of exams for English proficiency (TOEFL, IELTS and others like them). Without mastering this topic, you can hardly win the examiner’s heart: the story or essay “About myself” has become a classic exam topic.
Do you want to impress examiners (friends, colleagues, grandmother, girl) with the knowledge of an incredible number of epithets describing a person’s appearance? Read on!
| Bony | Bony |
| lanky, lanky | Skinny |
| Long | Long |
| Rounded | Rounded |
| Shorts | Short |
| well-shaped | Embossed, well-defined |
A source: https://www.englishapple.ru/index.php/blog/896-tell-me-about-yourself-описание-внешности-человека-на-английском
The person’s appearance and the nature of the exercise in English. Description of appearance in English: examples
You will probably need words and phrases to help you compose description of a person’s appearance in English. We advise you to pay attention not only to vocabulary, but also to examples. After all, they can be an excellent base for creating your own proposals.
Words to describe a person’s appearance in English
Let’s start with the most common words for descriptions of a person’s appearance in English. If your friend looks great, then you can please her with the following lexical units: beautiful, pretty, wonderful, attractive, gorgeous, good-looking.
In order to emphasize that a man looks good and not a woman, it is usually used handsome (handsome). You can also use good-looking и attractive. What if you suddenly need to emphasize the opposite? Remember ugly (ugly, ugly) и unsightly
When describing a person’s appearance in English, do not forget to pay attention to the following points:
tall, short, quite tall, medium height
slim, fat, skinny, thin, plump
young, old, middle-aged
round, oval, thin, a double chin, long nose, straight nose, turned up nose
long, short, curly, bald, straight, untidy, haircut, hairdo
a blonde, fair-haired, fair, brown-haired, dark-haired, red, gray
How to describe a person’s appearance in English?
Now let’s pay attention to examples of as can describe a person’s appearance in English.
This is a young man. He is rather attractive. The guy is of medium-height. He looks tired. He has short dark hair. His face is oval. His nose is turned up. The young man is thin. He is dressed neatly. He is wearing jeans, a shirt, a T-shirt and training shoes.
This is a young man. He’s pretty attractive. The guy is of average height. He looks tired. He has short dark hair. Oval face. The nose is turned up. The young man is thin. He is neatly dressed. He’s wearing jeans, a shirt, a T-shirt and sneakers.
You can build a story about a person’s appearance on two main speech structures: classical and more conversational. Let’s consider each of them in more detail.
The classic form of describing a person in English
I am slender. I’m slim.
A source: https://liveps.ru/vneshnost-cheloveka-i-harakter-uprazhneniya-na-angliiskom/
Description of a person in English
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Description of a person in English: appearance
The article on the blog of the same name is devoted to the description of a person’s appearance in English, which you can find in the «Topics in English» section. This article presents a large amount of vocabulary that may be required in describing a person in English. But, of course, the vocabulary component of that article is not complete. There are even more words and phrases dedicated to this topic.
For example, speaking about a person’s age, we can say that he is young (young), middle-aged (middle-aged), elderly (old). In addition to freckles, there may be wrinkles on the face.
You can also mention the voice (voice): melodic (tuneful), ringing (crisp) or hoarse (cracked). Don’t forget to mention the smile. We like people with a sincere, charming or engaging smile.
And we don’t like it when the interlocutor’s smile is artificial, forced or cunning.
To complement your interesting description of a person in English, add some idiomatic expressions to it:
Description of a person in English: character
The description of a person in English can imply a characteristic of his personality, including features of character, preferences and habits. As we know, character traits can be both positive and negative. There are also several criteria for describing a person in English.
First, it is the intellectual ability. A person in this case can be smart (clever / shrewd / brainy), smart (bright), resourceful (smart), talented (talented / gifted). In the absence of such qualities, we define a person as stupid (stupid / foolish / brainless), simple (simple), pitiful (silly / half-witted), and feeble-minded (daft / dumb).
A source: https://engblog.ru/description-of-people
How to describe your appearance in English
The appearance of oneself and others is a constant topic of discussion, conversation, and stories from relatives and friends. Another situation is a meeting with a stranger. To recognize him among the passengers, they describe first of all their clothes and appearance. And if a connoisseur of beauty and ended up in an art gallery, then you can discuss a portrait of a person with a foreign friend. For all these life situations, of course, you just need to know the vocabulary (and there are many) on the topic of appearance in English.
Adjectives about growth (height / stature) of a person
My cousin is tall and he is always wearing short trousers. It isn’t nice! My cousin tall and always wears short pants. It’s not beautiful!
To strengthen these adjectives and decorate speech, before the adjectives describing the appearance, you can put:
Adjectives about figure
My neighbor Miss Jenkins was plump and a funny woman and I loved talking to her.
She wants to be slender and diets. (only describing a woman)
it has a negative connotation, something like the Russian word «fat, fat»)
He was obese a man with a very loud voice.
Human face
Now let’s move on to the description human face.
There are many nationalities on our planet with different skin and face color. Let’s learn to call them correctly.
When frightened, a person may turn pale.
Free English Lessons
In this visual vocabulary lesson, you can learn useful vocabulary for describing people’s appearance in English. You’ll see a variety of words and phrases, with images, which you can use when describing people you know in clear, accurate English.
QUIZ: Describing People’s Appearance
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| Pos. | Name | Entered on | Points | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Table is loading | ||||
What do the words ‘overweight’ and ‘skinny’ describe?
What do the words ‘curly’, ‘wavy’ and ‘straight’ describe?
What do the words ‘long brown’ and ‘short fair’ describe?
What do the words ’round’, ‘thin’, ‘symmetrical’ and ‘long’ describe?
What do the words ‘fit’ and ‘stocky’ describe?
Where can ‘crow’s feet’ appear?
Which is the odd one out?
Which is the odd one out?
The same verb can be used before three of these words – but not before the odd one out.
Which is the odd one out?
Which is the odd one out?
Which is the odd one out?
We didn’t use the word ‘stomach’ in the lesson. It can be two things – it is the organ inside your body that processes food, and it’s also one word for the area at the front of your body, just above your waist. It is the second meaning in this case.
Which is the odd one out?
Complete the hyphenated adjective which means that someone is big, but because of muscle, not fat.
Complete the two-word noun for something that might appear at the bottom of someone’s face if they are overweight.
Complete the missing word to describe someone’s hairstyle.
His hair is short at the back and sides and s to one side at the top.
Complete the expression meaning that someone exercises regularly and is consequently fit and healthy.
Complete the adjective to describe someone who has chosen to remove their hair.
He’s not naturally bald – he has a s head.
Complete the noun for a beard which covers your chin and upper lip only.
Complete the noun referring to the shape of someone’s body.
Complete the adjective, meaning that someone’s facial features are very attractive and clearly-defined, like a statue.
He has c features.
The correct answer has different spellings in British and American English (we used the British version in the lesson); you can write either.
Read the Full Script
1. Describing Bodies
Let’s start describing people’s appearance by describing appearance of different bodies.
‘Well-built’ means big, but big because of muscle, not fat.
The opposite of well-built is ‘skinny’.
You can say ‘He’s very muscular’ or ‘He’s very muscly’. They have the same meaning.
There are other ways to say the same thing; for example, ‘He looks strong.’
‘She’s in good shape’ has the same meaning as ‘She’s fit.’ ‘Fit’ describes someone who exercises regularly and is strong.
Conversationally, in British English, ‘fit’ means ‘attractive’. It can be used for men and women.
The word ‘physique’ means the shape and condition of your body. ‘Physique’ is most often used with positive adjectives to describe someone who is strong, or who has an attractive body. For example, the collocations ‘muscular physique’ and ‘strong physique’ are common.
What’s the opposite of ‘fat’? Actually, there are several words.
‘Thin’ is the basic word. ‘Slim’ is similar; it means ‘thin and attractive’. ‘Skinny’ is a more negative word. It suggests that someone is too thin. If you say that someone is skinny, it means you think they should eat more.
Your ‘build’ is the shape of your body: whether you’re broad or thin, whether you’re muscular or not, and so on.
You can use many different adjectives with ‘build’. Common ones are ‘medium build’, ‘slim build’, ‘proportionate build’ and ‘stocky build’. ‘Stocky’ means big or wide, usually with muscle rather than fat.
‘Overweight’ is a more indirect word than ‘fat’, although neither is polite if you are talking directly to someone.
A gut means a big stomach. You might use it to describe someone who has a lot of extra weight on their stomach. You could also say ‘He has a big belly’, which has the same meaning.
2. Describing Faces
This is a chisel.
It’s a tool which is used to carve stone, for example to make a sculpture or statue.
‘Chiselled features’ means that someone’s facial features are very attractive and clearly-defined, like a statue. It’s generally used for men’s faces.
‘Well-defined’ is similar, but it can be used for men or women. If your facial features are well-defined, then your cheekbones, jaw, chin and so on all have a clear shape. This has a positive meaning, although it doesn’t necessarily mean ‘attractive’.
As you get older, you’ll get lines or wrinkles in your face.
Crow’s feet are the patterns of wrinkles you get in the corner of your eyes.
Wrinkles can be ‘faint’ – light and difficult to see – or ‘deep’.
‘Dimples’ here means small holes in your cheeks which appear when you smile. Not everyone has them.
Although it’s not common, you can use the word ‘dimple’ to refer to similar holes in other places. For example, some people have a dimple on their chin.
Freckles are common among people with very light skin. Going out in the sun can make your skin more freckled.
She has a round face, with a high forehead.
You can use many adjectives to describe the shape of someone’s face, such as: round, thin, symmetrical, long, or square.
If someone is overweight, they might have a double chin.
Next in describing people’s appearance, we’ll talk about how to describe people’s hair.
3. Describing Hair
‘Goatee’ is a common word; it’s a beard which covers your chin and upper lip only.
You can also have a full beard, which covers your whole face and neck.
There are many words for different styles of beard, but most of them are not commonly used, except by beard experts.
If you say ‘he’s going grey’, ‘going’ means ‘becoming’.
You can use ‘go’ in this way for changes in someone’s hair; for example ‘go grey’ or ‘go bald’.
You can also use it if someone’s face changes colour. For example ‘She went bright red’ or ‘He went pale when he heard the news’.
‘Curly’ describes hair with tight curls.
What’s the opposite?
The opposite is ‘straight hair’. In the middle, you can have ‘wavy hair.’
For length, you can say hair is long, short, medium length, or shoulder length.
For very long hair, you might say something like ‘Her hair reached down to her waist’.
‘Bald’ only refers to people who have lost their hair, usually because of aging. If someone shaves their hair off, you can say ‘He has a shaved head’.
Hair can be thick or thin; you can use these adjectives for hair on your head, or for facial hair: beards and moustaches.
In describing people’s appearance, when talking about hair, be careful with adjective order. Adjectives like ‘long’, ‘short’, ‘thick’ or ‘thin’ go before the colour.
So, you can have ‘long brown hair’, ‘thick dark hair’, ‘short fair hair’, and so on.
‘Fair hair’ is similar to ‘blond hair’, but is has a wider meaning. ‘Fair’ just means ‘light’, so it could include light brown hair or dark blond hair.
‘Sweep’ generally means to clean your floor with a broom. However, you can also use it for hair, especially when you push your hair in one direction.
You can sweep your hair to one side, sweep your hair into a ponytail, or sweep your hair back.
That’s all for this lesson. Hopefully you learned some useful phrases to describe appearance of people in English.
Keep practicing with these Oxford Online English lessons: Free English Vocabulary Lessons.