Appearance / Physical Attributes

General Appearance
 Good- looking  Beautiful
 Pleasant – looking  Pretty
 Attractive  Sweet
 Handsome

Shape/ Size / Build

 Of average height  Thin
 Of medium size  Slim
 Drooping shoulders  Stocky
 Muscular  Stout
 Skinny  Slim waist
 Lanky  Petite
 Chubby  Slender
 Short  Plump
 Tall  obese

Shape of face / complexion

 heart-shaped  wrinkled
 square jaw  glowing
 round  pale
 long  smooth
 broad  rosy
 oval  pimpled
 fair/ dark  wrinkled

Cheeks
 drooping  puffy
 glowing  rosy
 dimpled  pink
 sunken  pale

Nose
 pointed  flat
 crooked  big
 hooked  aquiline
 wide  bulbous

Mouth
 rosebud lips
 thick lips
 full lips
 thin lips
 smiling
 small
 wide

Hair
 shoulder length  lustrous
 bald  frizzy
 straight  permed
 unkempt  wavy
 thick  afro
 curly
 Positive Qualities Negative Qualities
 ambitious  Apathetic
 amiable  Arrogant
 assertive  Boastful
 brave  Boring
 capable  Clumsy
 caring  Cowardly
 considerate  Cruel/ wicked
 creative  Cunning
 dedicated  Dirty
 dependable  Dishonest
 determined  Disrespectful
 disciplined  Foolish
 enthusiastic  Fussy
 faithful  Greedy
 firm  Grumpy
 friendly  Hot-headed
 generous  Impatient
 gentle  Irresponsible
 hardworking / diligent  Jealous
 helpful  Lazy
 honest  Mean
 hospitable  Miserly
 humble  Narrow – minded
 humorous  Nasty
 impulsive  Nervous
 jovial  Quarrelsome
 kind  Quick – tempered
 loving  Rough
 loyal  Rude
 obedient  Selfish
 patient  Sneaky
 plucky  Snobbish
 polite  Stingy
 resourceful  Stubborn
 responsible  Stupid
 sincere  Superficial
 sociable  Testy
 thoughtful  Unfeeling
 thrifty  Ungrateful
 trustworthy  Weak
 Truthful  Unloving
 Understanding  Unkind

Examples
Jessie, who sits behind me in class, has long, curly black hair. What is most attractive about her
are her big eyes which show her to be a true Indian girl. Her full red lips and big mouth show her
skills in talking and laughing. Whenever we get together, she will send us into uncontrollable fits
of laughter with her jokes.

Miss Fara is a very generous person. She always helps anyone in trouble. There was once when
one of her students lost her school fees, she did not hesitate to help her. Not only did she pay the
fees for her student, she even gave her money to buy food from the canteen.

Mei Lee is very kind to her friends. One of her most outstanding quality is her willingness to
help no matter how busy she is. If there is anyone who has problems with school work, she is
always there to help.

Roger is always dressed in T-shirts and shorts wherever he goes. His hair is always messy as he
hardly ever combs it. (Describes Roger as a sloppy person.)

May Lin often dresses in bright-coloured dresses, long shirts or skinny jeans. She usually curls
her long dyed hair and lets it down. (Describes May Lin as a fashionable person)

Nadia has curly, shoulder –length hair which is black in colour. Her biggest attraction are her
big, beautiful brown eyes. Another feature that stands out is her wide mouth which shows her
skills in talking and cracking jokes. She always has something funny to say about each teacher
who walks into class and of course, that will send me into fits of laughter.

Similes
 as ageless as the sun  as mean as a miser
 as bold/brave as a lion  as proud as a peacock
 as clumsy as a bear  as strong as Hercules
 as cool as cucumber  as thin as a rake
 as fit as fiddle  as good as gold
 as happy as a lark

Idiomatic expressions
 the apple of one’s eye
 a black sheep
 a blue stocking
 has no backbone
 a bookworm
 chicken hearted
 a couch potato
 a good Samaritan
 a high flyer
 a pain in the neck
 a wet blanket
 a Jekyll and Hyde
 a chip of the old block