Elementary

Unit 2: What Does She Look Like?

 Unit objectives
At the end of this unit, students can:

Describe a person’s physical

appearance.

Use adjectives of physical

appearance.
Can you describe her?
 Grammar for Describing People
Form:
subject verb to be adjective
Form 1
He is tall.
subject verb to have (adjective) noun
Form 2
He has long hair.

subject verb to be + wearing clothing noun

Form 3
The girl is wearing flip flops.

Important:
Notice that forms 1 and 2 are in the Present Simple because
‘be’ and ‘have’ are state verbs.
Notice that form 3 is in the Present Continuous.
Form (continued):

Use the following structure to ask for another person’s description

(physical appearance):

What do/does subject look like

? What does your sister look like?
Function:

We use this grammar to describe build, height or age

(Form 1).
We also use it to describe hair color, hair length or facial
features (Form 2).
And we use it to describe the clothes somebody has on
(Form 3).
 Tips for Describing Physical Appearance
1. Identify the person as male or female. In many cases this will be
immediately obvious, and will probably be the first thing you’ll take
note of.
2. Take note of the person’s skin color, and guess race or ethnicity.
3. Estimate the person’s age range within 5 or 10 year increments.
4. Indicate the person’s height: ‘very tall,’ ‘tall,’ ‘medium height,’
‘short,’ or ‘very short.’
5. Describe the person’s weight with terms like ‘slim,’ ‘medium
weight,’ and ‘overweight.’ Be polite. Don’t use offensive terms like
‘fat’ or ‘skinny.’
6. Note the person’s hair color, length, style, and appearance. 
7. Describe the person’s clothing and accessories.
Examples of Form 1 (subject + verb to be + adjective):
Build

He is slim. He is medium weight. He is overweight.

Examples of Form 1 (subject + verb to be + adjective):
Height

He is short. He is medium height. He is tall.

Examples of Form 1 (subject + verb to be + adjective):
Age

She is young. He is middle aged. She is elderly.

She is about six. He is about forty. She is about eighty.
Examples of Form 2 (subject + verb to have + (adjective) + noun):

Hair Color

She has red hair. She has black hair. She has brown hair.
 Examples of Form 2 (subject + verb to have + (adjective) + noun):

Hair Length

She has short hair. She has shoulder- She has long hair.
length hair.
 Examples of Form 2 (subject + verb to have + (adjective) + noun):

Facial Features

He has big eyes. She has large He has a long chin.

eyebrows.
Examples of Form 3 (subject + verb to be + wearing + clothing noun):

Tops

He is wearing She is wearing He is wearing a

a cherry red a dark orange blue and white
T-shirt. sweater. striped shirt.
Examples of Form 3 (subject + verb to be + wearing + clothing noun):

Bottoms

He is wearing She is wearing a He is wearing

khaki shorts. black and gray black pants.
striped skirt.
Examples of Form 3 (subject + verb to be + wearing + clothing noun):

Footwear

He is wearing She is wearing He is wearing

sneakers. high heels. formal shoes.
Examples of Form 3 (subject + verb to be + wearing + clothing noun):

Accessories

She is wearing She is wearing He is wearing a

a panama hat. glasses. cap.
Exercise 1a: Choose the correct option with ‘to be,’ ‘to have’ or ‘to
be + wearing.’

1. Milagros is / has / is wearing eighteen years old.

2. Natali is / has / is wearing ripped jeans.
3. Edison Flores is / has / is wearing big ears.
4. Many students are / have / are wearing sneakers.
5. Gian Marco is / has / is wearing bald.
Exercise 1b: Choose the correct option with ‘to be,’ ‘to have’ or ‘to
be + wearing.’

1. The girl is / has / is wearing a tank top.

2. The student is / has / is wearing a hat.
3. Mirella is / has / is wearing long black hair.
4. Natalie Portman is / has / is wearing brown eyes.
5. Renzo is / has / is wearing glasses.
Exercise 2: Complete the following sentences with the appropriate form
of the verbs ‘to be,’ ‘have’ or ‘wear.’ Use the negative form, if necessary.

1. doesn’t have small feet. His feet are big.

The clown …………………….
2. is wearing
Today, the teacher ……………………. blue pants.
3. Kina Malpartida ……………………. is tall and strong.
4. Erika and Deinse …………………….
are wearing black boots.
5. have
The girls ……………………. long straight black hair.
6. Paolo Guerrero ……………………. isn’t overweight.
7. Jennifer Aniston …………………….has a long chin.
8. The woman …………………….
isn’t wearing an expensive perfume: it only cost US$9.
9. The student ……………………. is about twenty years old.
10. She …………………….
has shoulder-length curly brown hair.
Exercise 3: What does Maya look like? Describe her appearance.
Write two sentences with the verb ‘to be,’ ‘have’ and ‘wear,’
respectively. Use the words in the box.

pants, medium height, sneakers, slim, years old, spiky, T-shirt, long

Maya is slim and medium height.

1. …………………………………………………………………
She is about 20 years old.
2. …………………………………………………………………
She has spiky long brown hair.
3. …………………………………………………………………
She has black eyes.
4. …………………………………………………………………
She is wearing a pink T-shirt and olive pants.
5. …………………………………………………………………
She is also wearing white and purple sneakers.
6. …………………………………………………………………
Exercise 4: What does Scarlett Johansson look like? Look at the
picture and describe her appearance. Write a short composition.
Use the three grammar forms studied (at least 50 words).
………………………………………………………………………………
Scarlett Johansson is a very pretty and sexy Hollywood
………………………………………………………………………………
actress. She is young; she is about thirty-five years old. She is
………………………………………………………………………………
medium weight. Scarlett has blue eyes and full lips. In the
………………………………………………………………………………
photo, she has short straight blonde hair. She is wearing a
………………………………………………………………………………
black and white striped sweater. She is also wearing earrings
………………………………………………………………………………
and some makeup.
………………………………………………………………………………
Exercise 5: What does Benedict Cumberbatch look like? Look at the
picture and describe his appearance. Write a short composition.
Use the three grammar forms studied (at least 50 words).

………………………………………………………………………………
Benedict Cumberbatch is a handsome Hollywood actor.
………………………………………………………………………………
He is middle-aged; he is about forty-five years old. He is
………………………………………………………………………………
medium weight and tall. Benedict has blue eyes and thin
………………………………………………………………………………
lips. In the picture, he has short straight dark blonde hair.
………………………………………………………………………………
He is wearing a black tuxedo, a white shirt, a black silk tie
………………………………………………………………………………
and formal black shoes.
………………………………………………………………………………
Use the prompts given to complete questions about physical appearance.
Then, work with a partner. Describe the physical appearance of someone in
the classroom. Don’t say who it is! Your partner must discover who it is by
asking you some of the questions. After you finish, swap roles.

Is it a man or a woman?
1. man/woman? …………………………………………………………………
How old is he/she?
2. old/he/she? ……………………………………………………………………
Is he/she medium weight?
3. he/she/medium weight? …………………………………………………….
Is he/she medium tall?
4. he/she/medium tall? …………………………………………………………
Does he/she have long hair?
5. he/she/long hair? …………………………………………………………….
Is he/she wearing jeans/sneakers/etc.?
6. he/she/jeans/sneakers/etc.? ………………………………………………..
Is he/she wearing earrings/a cap/a watch?
7. he/she/earrings/a cap/a watch? …………………………………………………
Communicative Activity 1
Communicative Activity 2