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Supplementary Material 005

DESCRIBING PEOPLE
(Supplementary Material for Gamma 1)
Describing Physical Appearance

What does she look like? (What + do/does ... look like?)
- She has blue eyes and brown hair.
- She’s a woman with blue eyes and brown hair.
- She’s a blue-eyed, brown-haired woman.

HAIR long, medium-length, shoulder-length, bobbed, short, straight, curly, wavy, frizzy,
permed, thinning, bald, receding, blonde, fair, dark, brown, black, red, auburn, going
grey, white, dyed, bleached

EARS big, small, pierced

FACE oval, round, square, long, chubby, thin

FOREHEAD high, low
EYEBROWS bushy, thick, plucked, straight
EYES green, blue, brown, greenish-blue, grey, hazel
small, big, round, slitty, almond-shaped, dreamy, close-set, narrow
NOSE long, turned-up, pointed, sharp, roman, boxer’s, aquiline, snub
CHEEKS high cheekbones, thin, plump
MOUTH wide, generous, small, tight-lipped
LIPS thin lips, full lips, cupid’s bow lips
CHIN pointed, firm, weak

COMPLEXION pale, fair, white, dark, black, olive, tanned

SKIN pitted, freckled, wrinkled, lined, smooth

SHOULDERS broad, narrow, round, square

BUILD thin, slender, slim, muscular, well-built, heavily-built, plump, stout, stocky,
overweight, (-) skinny, very thin, (-) fat, obese, (-) very fat

HEIGHT tall, of medium height, short, average

AGE young, middle-aged, elderly, old, in his / her teens, school-aged, in his / her early
thirties, in his / her mid-fifties, in their late forties

EXPRESSION serious, cheerful, worried, friendly

GENERAL good / nice / pleasant looking, pretty, beautiful, handsome (masc.), attractive
APPEARANCE plain,well / casually dressed
(-) scruffy, untidy-looking, unattractive, ugly

OTHERS (to have) a mole, dimples, pimples, a scar, freckles, wrinkles, crow’s feet, a tattoo,
a hairy chest, bangs, sideburns, a side / center parting, a beard, a moustache, a
dimple in the chin, a double-chin, to look old, to look like a businessperson.

*(-) These words have a negative connotation

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Describing Character

What is he like? (What + to be ... like?)

- He is usually quite relaxed and easy-going about most things.
- He seems a bit unfriendly at first, but when you get to know him you realise he’s very warm and kind.
- When it’s sunny he feels more cheerful and optimistic, but when it’s cold and raining he gets really
miserable.

INTELLECTUAL (+) intelligent, bright, clever, smart, sharp, able, gifted, talented, brainy
ABILITY (-) stupid, foolish, half-witted, simple, silly, brainless, daft, dumb,dim,(intelligent
in a negative way) cunning, crafty, sly

ATTITUDES TOWARDS optimistic, pessimistic, extroverted, introverted, relaxed, tense, practical

LIFE dreamy, sensible, sensitive, serious, to have drive / initiative

ATTITUDES TOWARDS sociable, gregarious, shy, quarrelsome, quick-tempered, argumentative,

OTHER PEOPLE cruel, sadistic, easy-going, even-tempered, moody, impolite, rude, ill-
mannered, discourteous, honest, trustworthy, reliable, sincere, kind-hearted,
jealous, envious

Some characteristics can be either positive or negative depending on your point of view. The words in column
‘B’ mean roughly the same as the words in column ‘A’ except that they have negative rather than positive
connotations.

A B
focussed, determined obstinate, stubborn, pig-headed
thrifty / economical mean, tight-fisted
confident, self-assured self-important, arrogant
assertive agressive, bossy
original peculiar, weird, strange, eccentric, odd
frank, direct, straightforward blunt, abrupt
broad-minded, liberal unprincipled, permissive
inquiring inquisitive, nosy
generous extravagant
innocent naive
ambitious pushy

Exercise I. What questions do you need to ask if you want to know about:
a) someone’s general appearance?
b) someone’s weight?
c) someone’s height?
d) someone’s character?

Exercise II. Replace the underlined words in the sentence with a more polite one.
1. She’s very nice but ugly.
2. He was so tight-fisted. He never bought me anything.
3. Paul is getting really fat since he got married, isn’t he?
4. Don’t you think Jim’s really nosy?
5. Most of the men they met at the party were self-important.
6. Sam can be really aggressive at times.
7. She’s so elegant and her husband so scruffy.

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Exercise III. Look at the sentences in column A and match them with the words in column B.

A B
1. He usually disagrees with what other people say. ___ pessimistic

2. Her sister is terribly skinny. ___ assertive

3. Do you think ‘the glass is half empty’? ___ elderly

4. He wants to date a ginger-haired woman. ___ sociable

5. It’s easy for me to tell people ___ argumentative

if I feel they have treated me badly.

6. We expected the tour guide to be old. ___ slim

7. She likes to be in the company of other people. ___ red-haired

Exercise IV. a) What do these people look like?.

b) Now based on their physical appearance, what do you think they are like?

1. 2.

3.

4. 5.

6.

7. 8.

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Describing people
KEY CHECK

Exercise I. What questions do you need to ask if you want to know about:

a) What does she / he look like?

b) How much does she / he weigh?
c) How tall is she / he?
d) What’s she / he like?

Exercise II. Replace the underlined words in the sentence with a more polite one.

1. She’s very nice but plain.

2. He was so economical. He never bought me anything.
3. Paul is getting really stout since he got married, isn’t he?
4. Don’t you think Jim’s really inquiring?
5. Most of the men they met at the party were self-assured.
6. Sam can be really assertive at times.
7. She’s so elegant and her husband so casual.

Exercise III. Look at the sentences in column A and match them with the words on column B.

1. He usually disagrees with what other people say. argumentative

2. Her sister is terribly skinny. slim
3. Do you think ‘the glass is half empty’? pessimistic
4. He wants to date a ginger-haired woman. red-haired
5. It’s easy for me to tell people if I feel they have treated me badly. assertive
6. We expected the tour guide to be old. elderly
7. She likes to be in the company of other people. sociable

Exercise IV. a) What do these people look like?.

b) Now based on their physical appearance, what do you think they are like?

ASK YOUR LAB TEACHER TO CHECK YOUR ANSWERS