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80 AWESOME PHRASES TO WOW YOUR TEACHERS!
itions.
Easy- to-use phrases to describ e emotion s. Suitable for Primary School Compos
Centent s
Phrases te 8escrili e Hefl)pi,iness
Phreses te •escrilt e St1dness
Phrases te 9escrilt e An9er
Phrases te IDescrille Fear
Phrases te G>escritie Surf'i)rise
n.rG1ses to 0escrib e Excitem ent
PhrGlses te E>escribe Pain
Phrases te e>escrilit'e Tiredness
How to Use this Guide
s. This will give more
Use this guide to remind yourself to focus on the charact er's feelings or emotion
with the charact ers.
"life" to the story and the readers will be able to forge an emotion al bond
ition. Try using a
Do refer back to this guide every now and then when you are writing a compos
your vocabu lary
new phrase or word for every new compos ition. This will not only help to expand
but also allows you to experim ent with differen t ways of writing.
PHRASES TO DESCRIBE HAPPINESS
! . in a state of bliss - comple te happine ss, spiritual joy
a state of bliss.
a. Eating the choco;a tE. cake n, ad2 b y th~,, famous pastry chef put me in
h e r.
b . Jane was in a state of bliss after her boyf1i0,- ;d of five ;.'e ars propose d to
2. on cloud nine - in a state of elation
o . Tom was on cloud nine when Mary agreed to go out on a date with
him.
b. Solly was on cloud nine after she gradua ted from college.
3. over the moon - extreme ly happy
a. When he fo und out that he had passc1d his En9 ii5t1 examina tions, he
was over the moon.
number..
b . Jolin was over the moon when the announ cer called out his lucky draw
4. dizzy with delight - in a stat~ of (~nc ontrollab le) happine ss
h e r a puppy.
a . Jon e w a s dizzy with delight when he found out that his pare nts had bought
ion.
b . The boy was dizzy with delight to find out that he had won thE; c ompetit
5. jumping for joy - a c tion to show happine ss
school th e ne xt day.
a. The childre n were jumping for joy when they found out that there was no
b. When his p a,ents agreed to buy him a bicycle, he jumped for jo y.
6. in high spirits - in a good mood
a . The boys w ere in high spirits after they won the soccer matc h.
b. In high spirits, the soldiers sang lo udly as they m a rc hed.
7. having a whale of a time - enjoying a really good time o r eve nt
a. The twins had a whale of a time at the theme park.
b . Trust me, you will have a whale of time at this party.
8. sev~nth he_aven - e te rnal bliss (used as a hyperbo le)
a h th t
a , Tania was ,n seve nth heaven whe n she fo und o ut that she go t into the second ry sc o o I a
she wanted .
b . Wh e n the baby sp o ke her very first wo rd, her mother was in seve nth hea
ven.
9. grin from ear to ear - smiling widely
a He g rinne d fro m ear to ear whe n he unwrap ped his present.
~ 1. Th e c heeky b o y grinne d from ear to ear os
he thoug ht of a really g 0 0 d
prank to p la y o n his
friend.
 10. walking on air - elat ed or exu bera
ntly joyful
a. Tony was wal king on air whe n he
foun d out that he got top in class
b. He sure is wal king on air toda y! I
won der wha t is the goo d news?

PHRASES TO DESCRIBE SADNESS

1. down in the dumps - gloo my, mel
anc holi c state of min d
a. Mr Tan was dow n in the dum ps
afte r he lost his job.
b. Sofia was dow n in the dum ps to
find out that her pet cat had passed
2. heart-rending - cau sing gre at sadn awa y
ess / distress
a. She san g such a hea rt-re ndin g vers
ion of that song that it mad e eve ryon
b. Whe n she hea rd the bad news, e in the room tear.
she let out a hea rt-re ndin g wail and
3. feeling blue - unh app y, depress fell to her knees in grief
ed
a . He was feel ing blue as he was left
out from the class gathering.
b . Fee ling blue , Sharon lock ed hers
elf in the room and ate ice- crea m.
4. hea vy-h eart ed / hea vy heart
- feeling mel anc holi c or depressed
a. Afte r find ing out that she had faile
d all her tests, Sally wal ked hom e with
b. Joh n was hea vy-h ear ted to find a hea vy heart.
out that his team had lost the com
5. wre tche d with grief - in a state of peti tion .
extr eme sadness, grief-stricken
a. Lo/a was wre tche d with grie f whe
n she foun d out that her pet dog had
b. Wre tche d with grief. the lady buri died.
ed her face in her han ds and star ted
6. In the doldrums - sluggish . in low sobbing.
spirits, dull. listless
a . Jac k was in the dold rum s afte r losin
g the mat ch. He spent mos t of his time
b . One the first day of sch ool afte r sleeping in his room.
the holidays, the teac her cou ld sens
in the doldrums. e that the entire class was
7. bum med out - upset, disa ppo
inte d
a. He felt bun ime d out crre r bein g
lo5ing the bad min ton mat ch.
b. I am feeling bum med out from
gett ing fired from my job.
8. red uce d to tears - mak e a person
cry
a. Whe n the Mr Lee repr ima nde d
her for not han ding up her homewo
b. The box er was red uce d to tears rk, she was red uce d to tears.
whe n he realised that he hod lost
9. crestfallen - dispirited, deje cted the mat ch.
a . He was cres tfall en to find out that
his app lica tion to his sec ond ary sch
reje cted . ool of cho ice was
b. Afte r losing the mat ch, the players
wen t hom e, crestfallen.
1O. sinking feeling - a feeling of uneasin
ess and apprehension
a . / hav e a sinking feel ing that this
idea will not work out well.
b. The mom ent he hea rd the pho ne
rang , he had a sinking feel ing that
som ethi ng was not right.
PHRASES TO DESCRIBE ANGER
1. blin ded by rag e - una ble to thin
k clearly due to extreme ang er
a. Blin ded by rag e, he thre w his cha
ir at the teac her.
b. Tim was so blin ded by rag e that
he sho uted at his gro upm ates in fron
2. go ballistic - fly into a rag e t of the who le class.
a. Fath er wen t ball istic afte r he foun
d out that I was sus pen ded from scho
b. I got som e bad news for you but ol.
you must promise me that you will
hea r it. not go ballistic whe n you
3. burst a bloo d vessel - to be very
ang ry or frustrated ove r som ethi ng
a. Mrs Um nea rly burst a bloo d vess
el while mar king the stud ent' s essa
b. If I talk to her aga in, I mig ht burs ys.
t a bloo d vessel
4. expressed out rag e - sho wed disp
leasure or ang er
a. The pub lic exp ress ed outr age ove
r the hikin g of pub lic transport fare
s.

I
b. The work ers expr esse d their outr age whe
this year. n the boss brok e the new s that their salar
ies will be cut
5. on a warp ath - extre mely angr y and incli
ned to take actio n (ofte n hostile)
a. Mr Toh was on a warp ath the mom ent
he foun d out that his car was vand alise d.
b. Stay awa y from him. Som eone stole his
han d pho ne and now he is on a warp ath.
6. hissy fit - a tantr um or an angr y outb urst
a . My youn ger sister threw a hissy fit whe
n my pare nts refus ed to buy her the toy she wan
b. Igno re her. She is throw ing ano ther one ted.
of her hissy fits.
7. anim osity - stron g hostility, hatr ed
a. I do not know wha t I did to her to dese
rve such anim osity !
b. The seni or stud ents disp laye d anim osity
cour t with them . to the junio r stud ents who were shar ing the
bask etba ll
8. tong ue-la shin g - to give a scol ding
a . Jon rece ived a seve re tong ue /ashing
from our form teac her afte r he faile d to han
hom ewo rk for the third time . d up his
b . Fath er gav e me a tong ue lash ing for
failin g my com posi tion test.
9. exas pera ted - infur iate, irrita te inten sely
a . Sally was exas pera ted by her moth er's cons tant nagg ing.
b. I am exas pera ted by her lous y work ing
attitu de!
l 0. blow your top off - to lose your temp er
a. The prin cipa l blew his top off whe n the
boy argu ed bac k inste ad of apol ogis ing
b . Take a step back and coun t to ten. You for his misd eeds.
you will regr et later. do not wan t to blow your top off and say
thing s that
PHRASES TO DESCRiSE fi:AR
1. the heeb le-je eble s - a state of nerv ousn
a . This plac e is givin g me the heeb ie-je ebieess caus ed bv fear or anxi ety.
s.
b. The mom ent I ente red the store room , I got the heeb ie-je ebie s.
2. bloo d run cold - to be extre m ely frigh
tene d
a . Whe n the robb er whip ped out his knife to my thro at, my bloo d ran cold.
b . Hea ring her scre am mad e my bloo d run
cold
3. to get goos e bum ps - bum ps appe arin
g on the skin due to cold or emo tiona l stress
a. Sally got goose bum ps the mom .
ent she hear d som eone c all her nam e out in the dark .
b. That how ling soun d is givin g me goos ebum ps!
4. deer caug ht in the headlights - too frigh
tene d or surprised to mov e.
a. "Lar ry!" the teac her shou ted. Larry imm
edia tely froze like a dee r c aug ht in the head
b . Like a dee r caug ht in the head light s, Garr light s.
en stoo d root ed to the grou nd with his jaw
ope n. hang ing
5. sense of fore bodi ng - feeli ng a sense of
impe ndin g evil or misfortune.
a . Whe n I e nter ed the house, I felt a stron g sense of foreb odin g.
b . As she ente red the lift with the stran ger,
she got a strong sense of fore bodi ng.
6. your hear t missed a beat - to feel so frigh
tene d or exci ted that your hear t b eats faste
a . Tom's Felt his hear t miss a be at whe n he r.
hear d a loud , gruf f voic e behi nd him I
b. My hea rt missed a bea t the mom ent that truc k sw erve d out of now here !
7 . on pins and need les - nervous. in susp
ense
a . He was on pins and need les while wait
b . While wait ing For the exam resu lts to be
8 . scar ed out of one' s wits - extre mely frigh
ing for his name to be calle d out.
relea sed, the stud e nts were on pins and
nee dles.
1
tene d
a. Mic helle was scar ed out of her wits whe
n her brot her jump ed out of the clos et with
b. The loud explosion scare d me a mas k.
out of my wits.
9 . shak e like a leaf - to tre mb le inte nsely
from fear
.//
j
,r g like a leaf as she hi
d under he r be d. against her throo/
herself from shakinaf his knife up
a. She could not stop the robber pressed
d to sh ake like a le when
b. The hostage starte
al ly fast or de ep :d hy pe rv en til at in g.
10. hyperventilate
- to br ea th e ab no rm she st artt: e.
am ou nt of bl oo d
she lost, riv ed a l th e sc en
a. When she sa w th
e he n th e po lic e ar
from th e sh oc k w
ll hy pe rv en til at in g
b. The victim was sti
RPB!SE
PHRASES QESCRIBE SU
ro s - too surprised to
sp ea k . nt l
or ds rig ht no w.
I. at a loss tor word ~s i:~ :~ l~ss fo r w
ga ve tmte a_ su rp
r words wh e~ s~e
a. I was at a loss fo t to say. I dt dn t ex pe c o wm so . .
b . 1don 'f kn ow w ha tz ~. . nd s
surprised to sp ea k ve w on th e first pr
2 dumbstruck - too st an no un ce d th at I ha dh m fe w se co
O ·
a: I was dumbstruck wh
en th e ho th at ha pp en ed w
nt string of ev en ts
ck by /1,e su bs eq ue
b. He was dumbstru
rprised or co nf us ed
3. taken aback - su
k by the news! s staff.
a. I was taken ab ac ac tio ns of the sale .
ab ac k by the ru de te rin g an no un ce
m en t
b. Laura was taken ex pe ct ed or sh at d to be re ta m ed
fo r
bshell - m ak e an un pa re nt s th at he ha
4. dropped the bom g di nn er. /-ie to ld his
e bombshell durin
a. Toby dr op pe d th
eg na nt.
failing all his exams. s th re e m on th s pr
ve al in g th at she wa
e bombshell by re un ex pe ct ed
b. She dr op pe d th ne by do in g so m et
hi ng
- to surprise so m eo eed.
5. caught off guard by striker's su dd en
sp
s ca ug ht of f gu ar d
a. The de fe nd er wa lly's sudden at ta ck
.
of f gu ar d by the bu
b. Wil!y was ca ug ht de d
astonished, as to un
6. flabbergasted - he saw outside hi~
~h r::,p.
sted by the qu eu e he r house.
a. He was flabberga so w rhe de corations in
erga::.fe:d when she
b. Karen was flabb think properly rfo rm in g th e da re
de vi l
7. stupefied - as
tonished, unable to n was the on e pe
realised th at her so
upefied when she
a. His m ot he r was st th ag ap e.
there with his m ou
stuns. st done, Bob st oo d
at his friend ha d ju
b. Stupefied by wh azing
8. jaw-dropping - am r sk at eb oa rdI
op pi ng stunts on he
'
rform some ja w- dr
a. Hilary is ab le to pe
b. Th e ac ro ba t di d
9. confound - to ca
some ja w- dr op pi ng
use surprise an d co
conf ou nd ed when

m ov es to en te rta in
nfusion
sh e fo un

the au di en c~ .
d ou t th at he r na ug
ti f
ht ie st st ud en t wa s 1e op
I
I
a. The :e ac he r was e
scorer m class. to write du rin g th
th ey were ta sk ed
by the essay to pi c
we re co nf ou nd ed
~ ~ :t e students
un ex pe c tedly
- without warning,
I 0. out of the blue ud crash.
there was a very lo
a. O ut of th e blue, ou t of th e blue .
erving into m y lane
b. The car ca me sw
PHRASES To DE SCRIBE EXCITEMENTf t
1. bounce off the wa
lls _ f II gy an d ex ci te m en .
u . nervous ener
0
bo fo ld th em th at th e y w er e go ,n g on a
a. The c hildren were wh en the te a ch er
unc,ng of f the walls
field trip •
b. After he aring th e
go od ng of f th e wa lls
~~ w~, she was bo un ci ·
ng
2. adrenaline pumpi - a ,g state of ex citem en t
a. As the starter gu n sounde d of f d • pu m pi ng
I
b . adrenaline sta rte d P . , m y a re nalin e started
be gan. .
. His
citem e~7~~ngk wh
en th e co m pe tition
;· bNuzz ~ sense o f ex , ,c
. o thing be ats th e buzz of scoring a thr .
basket ba ll!
ee-pomter sho t in
 away !
a. Th_at lady is such a pain in the neck. I hope she goes
b. Elliot can be a real pain in the neck to work with.
1O. torturous - causi ng suffer ing
allow ed to rest.
a. After the tortur ous trainin g, the soldiers were finally
rs to faint halfw ay.
b . The tortur ous heat caus ed many of the runne

PHRASES TO DESCRIBE TIREDNESS

l . dead tired - extre mely wear y
12 midni ght.
a. Fathe r was dead tired after worki ng overt ime tiff
b. I am dead tired from study ing the whole of last night.
2. sleep like a log - to sleep deep ly or sound ly
my radio was turne d on!
a . I slept like a log last night. I did not even realise that
on sleep ing like a tog.
b. Moth er tried to wake him up but lie carrie d
3. worn out - exha usted
a. I am worn out from solvin g probl em after probl em.
b. When the entire day was over, Kelly felt worn out.
4. burn out - beco me exha usted
to get burne d out!
a . Do take a brea k from study ing! You do not want
l proje cts he had to comp lete.
b. He was feelin g burne d out from all the schoo
aslee p any mom ent
5. read y to drop - nearl y too exha usted and may fall
r, Jimm y was ready to drop.
a. After 3 hours of badm inton and 2 hours of socce
b. I was read y to drop by the time I got home .
6. hit the sack - go to bed
big test tomo rrow.
a. I have to hit the sack earl11 tonig ht as I have a
tomo rrow.
b. It is time to hit the sack. Train ing resum es early
7. dog- tired - extre mely tir~d
tation game s.
a . Soph ie was aog-t ired after one whole day of orien
s.
b . t am dog- tired after teach ing back -to-b ack classe
8 . out like a light -· to fall aslee p quick ly
a . The mom ent lie sat down , he was out like a light.
like a light.
b . Few minu tes into the show , Dave was alrea dy out
9. dead on one's feet - extre mely wear y
ut break .
a. Robe rt was dead on his feet after worki ng for 8 hours witho
my feet.
b. After 4 hc,urs of danc e prac tice, I was dead on
10. drain ed - tired letely drain ed.
a. After teach ing non-s top for 8 hours, the teach er was comp
b. Noel was drain ed from the long- dista nce trave lling.
Final Word from the Author
Happ y Writin g!
#Big Z

·,~-
b. The teenagers got a buzz from sitting that roller-coaster.
4. ripple of excitement - a series of quiet but excited murmurs . .
a. A ripple of excitement spread thrpugh the hall before the pnnc,pa/ was about to make the
announcement of school closure the coming Friday.
b. The news coused a ripple of excitement to spread among the students.
5. cause a stir - to cause unusual interest or excitement
a. The loud bang in the corridor caused a stir and soon everyone was running out from the
classroom.
b. Richard brought his pet dog to school and caused quite a stir.
6. pumped - extremely enthusiastic
a. I am so pumped for my performance later on!
b. Felicia was feeling pretty pumped for the competition.
7. burst with excitement - to have a strong feeling of excitement
a. When she heard the news, she burst with excitement.
b. The children burst with excitement when they found out that they were going on an excursion.
8. eager beaver - an enthusiastic person
a. James is on eager beaver who will finish the entire group project himself!
b. During the math class, Tobias transforms into an eager beaver as it is his best subject.
9. fervour - intense, passionate feeling
a. The pop star brought the audience to a fervour with her most popular songs.
b. The crowd displayed a patriotic fervour during the National Day celebrations.
10. zeal - great energy and enthusiasm in pursuing something
a. He possessed tremendous zeal in achieving his dreams.
b . The zealous fans thronged the stage to get the pop star's autograph.

PHRASES TO DESCRIBE PAIN

1• gruelling - tiring and demanding
a . The long, grueiiing marathon put many runners to the test.
b. This is a gruelling job. Are you sure you can take it?
2. torrnent - to undergo pt"1/sical pain or mental anguish
a . Going through 4 periods of math class in one day is just a torment!
b. Tormented by hi::; past, the ex-convict had difficulty sleeping at night.
3. lacerations - deep cuts or tear in flesh
a . She suffered some lacerations after falling off her motorcycle.
b . Blood was flowing out from the lacerations in his leg.
4. tender - painful, sore
a . My knee was still tender from that fall.
b . Don't touch my arm! It is still tender.
5. writhed - twisting, squir_ming ~ontortions of the body.
a. The injured player was wri{MLng ·on the grass and groaning in pain.
b . Clutching his sfomachi't~fJ?~Y writhed in pain.
6. agonising - extremely painful or distressful
a . The parents hod a long, agonising wait outside the surgery room while their child was being
operated on.
b. The pain was so agonising that he was groaning every few minutes.
7 . excruciating - intensely painful
a. The pain was so excruciating that he screamed like a little girl.
b . An excruciating pain shot through my ,-ibs.
8. throbbing - strong regular rhythm
o . I have o throbbing headache.
b9 . His.arm throbbed in pain .
· Pam th~ neck - a nuisance