Describing People
Lesson Plan- Describing People
When you want to know what someone looks you, you are going to ask for a description. Descriptions can be very simple (he’s ugly) or very descriptive and detailed. (She’s 5 feet 4 inches tall, with straight flaming red shoulder length hair, sparkling dark green eyes, a dazzling pearly white smile, with a cute dimple on her left cheek, and lightly tanned facial skin as smooth as a baby’s behind, with the body like Marilynn Monroe).
When asking for descriptions there are a number of expressions that can be used. Look at the examples.
English Expressions- Describing People
Expression Response
What does ( … she) look like? She looks like a model.
What color is ( … her) hair? It’s black?
What kind of hair style does ( … he) have? He has short curly hair.
What color are (his) eyes? They’re blue.
How tall is (she)? She is five feet, four
inches tall.
How much do ( … you) weight? I weight 75 kilos.
Does (… he) have any distinguishing He has a scar
characteristics? on his left cheek.
How old is ( …your mother)? She’s 45 years old.
Does (… the professor) wear glasses? No, but he wears
contacts.
What is (… she) wearing? She is wearing a red
T-shirt, tight blue jeans,
and sandals.
Below are adjectives that can be used when describing people’s physical characteristics.
Hair: long, short, straight, curly, permed, ponytail, bangs, crew cut,
shoulder length, bald, receding hairline, salt and pepper, blond,
gray, bald, wavy
Body build: skinny, thin, slender, average weight, muscular, fat,
chubby, plump, over weight, obese, beer belly, average build,
stocky, medium height, tall, short
Facial features: mustache, beard, side burns, pimples, dimples, round
eyes, square chin, big nose, wears glasses, round face, mole
When giving descriptions, it is also sometimes useful to talk about what the person is wearing. There are many words that can be used to describe and identify apparel. Looks at these examples.
Types of Clothing
Tops Under Garments Women’s Wear Outer Wear
casual shirt underwear (men) skirt jacket
dress shirt briefs (men) dress coat
tee-shirt panties (women) pant suit wind breaker
sweat shirt bra (women) blouse sweater
top stocking (women)
v-necks nylons (women)
turtle necks socks (women)
pull-over
Bottoms Accessories Clothing Material
jeans hat/cap wool
pants tie polyester
trousers belt cotton
shorts scarf denim
cut offs gloves plastic
glasses leather
jewelry silk
Descriptions of people are not limited to physical descriptions but also to their character and personality. There are a number of expressions that can be used when asking about some ones personality or character.
English Expressions- Describing Personality
Expression: What’s (… your room mate) like?
Response: She’s very friendly, but shy.
Expression: What kind of ( … boss) do you have?
Response: He’s very intelligent, but very demanding and somewhat of a perfectionists.
Expresssion: What kind of personality do ( … you look for in a spouse)?
Response: Someone who is assertive, but not aggressive; outgoing,
but not dominating; confident, but not insecure.
Expression: How’s (… your co-worker), personality wise?
Response: She’s fairly helpful and considerate, but extremely opinionated.
There are also countless words that can be used to describe a persons personality and character. Look at some of them below.
shy outgoing demanding easy going
confident insecure pushy laid back
domineering meek intelligent tupid
attentive neglectful concerned carefree
passionate indifferent hot blooded mellow
strict lenient tolerant intolerant
Very often, when describing someone, compliments may be paid. Every one likes to hear compliments. Compliments make people feel good about themselves, and we all need that at times. Compliments can be made about how a person looks, about their dress, about a skill or ability, or about a behavior. There are a number of expression that can be used to compliment someone. Look at the examples below.
Expression: What a beautiful (… new dress).
Response: Thanks, ( … I’m glad you like it).
Expression: You look absolutely ( … gorgeous).
Response: How kind of you to say so.
Expression: Your daughter can (… certainly play the violin with best of them).
Response: Thank you, ( … I’m glad you appreciate her talent).
Expression: Nice (… tie). Is it new?
Response: Yes, (… it was a birthday present from my wife. She has great taste).
Expression: Your (… presentation was superb. The entire audience was spell bound).
Response: Thanks, I appreciate that, (… but I was so nervous).
Dialogue- Describing People
Matt: What does your girl friend look like?
John: She’s very beautiful, with dark brown eyes and flaming red hair.
Matt: How long is her hair?
John: Her hair is very long, it goes down to the middle of her back.
Matt: How tall is she?
John: She’s my height: five feet, four inches.
Matt: And is she slim, plump, average weight, obese?
John: She’s slim, like a model. And she has a great figure.
Matt: And she’s in her early twenty’s, right?
John: Yes, she’s the same age as me.
Matt: What kind of clothes does she usually wear?
John: She almost always wears blue jeans and T-shirts to school.
Usually the T-shirts are blue, that’s her favorite color.
Matt: Does she wear glasses?
John: Yes, sometimes she wears small gold rimmed glasses, but
usually she wears contacts. Why all the questions about my girl friend?
Matt: Just curious. Besides, I think that’s her over there across the street.
John: Where? I don’t see her.
Matt: Under that big tree. Isn’t she the one kissing the sailor?
John: What! Gloria!
Conversation Activities- Describing People
1. Pair Work- discussion
Describe people (family, friends, classmates, teachers, well know
personalities in your country) you know to you partner. Include
in your description the persons:
height and weight eye and hair color
hair style approximate age
any distinguishing features type of clothes they normally wear
2. Pair Work- discussion
Give compliments to your partner about the following. Your partner should
respond appropriately, but with humility.
A new dress or shirt
Their violin performance at a concert
A new hair cut
A nose job
An oral presentation in front of the class
3. Pair Work-discussion
One partner selects a prominent personality in your country or the world,
without naming him or her to his partner. The person may be a TV or
movie star, sports figure, politician, corporate head, renowned academician,
etc. Describe the person until your partner can guess who is being
described.
You may tell what kind of job the person has, the style of clothes they
usually wear (if known), and what they are well know for.
Example statements include:
This person is very tall, but kind of thin.
This person has long black hair and ……
This person is an entertainer and is well known for his role in the movie….
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