Appearance is definitely not the most important thing in a person. However, by external signs, we distinguish people from each other, so these features are important. To give a verbal portrait of someone means to allow other people to more fully imagine who they are talking about. This skill is especially important in the work of a writer or journalist. The topic of this article will be a description of the appearance in English. Examples will help you remember the vocabulary and better understand how to use it. Also, your attention will be offered several useful game exercises. We will consistently learn to talk about appearance, ours or someone else's.
General appearance and age
It's not hard to draw a verbal portrait using English. The description of a person's appearance begins with general data, which may include, for example, gender and approximate age. Use the following vocabulary:
- woman − woman;
- man − man;
- girl − girl, girl;
- boy − boy, guy;
- guy − guy;
- baby;
- toddler− baby who is starting to walk;
- child − child 3-10 years old;
- teen − teenager;
- senior (elderly) woman / man
The word old (old) is not recommended to indicate age, as it sounds impolite. But for young (young) there are no prohibitions.
Often, in order to be more specific about how old a person is, English uses the words early, middle, and late, followed by tens: 10 (teens), 20 (twenties), 30 (thirties), 60 (sixties), etc. This is best understood with concrete examples.
He is in his early fifties − He is in his early 50s.
She is in her late twenties − She is in her 20s (about 30).
A person of mid thirties − A person about 34-35 years old.
She is in her late teens
This is more clearly reflected in the diagram below.
Of course, if you know the exact age of the person whose appearance you are describing, then you can give a number. However, be aware that in many Western cultures it is not customary to focus on how old someone is, especially when it comes to a woman.
Skin color, height and figure
This topic is also very sensitive, but the description of appearance in English is indispensable without it. Below you will find a list of words that will help you. An interesting fact: in Russian, when talking about physique, we often use the word “complexity”; in English, complexion meansskin color (usually referring to the face).
- dark complexion - swarthy or dark skin;
- light complexion − fair skin;
- tanned − tanned;
- ruddy − ruddy;
- pale - pale.
To indicate height, use vocabulary:
- tall − tall;
- short − low;
- medium height
With a description of the physique, you need to be extremely correct so as not to offend a person. For example, if he (she) is overweight, then the most polite adjectives when describing a figure would be:
- plump − complete (about men and women);
- full-figured − full (mostly about women).
There is an interesting expression − curvy lady. It can be translated into Russian as “a woman with forms”, “curvy”.
Other words to describe female and male figures:
- slender − slender;
- slim − thin;
- well built;
- muscular built − muscular;
- tubby - pot-bellied, stocky;
- strong − strong.
Hair and eyes, facial features
It's pretty simple here. The following list of words will help you write the most complete and varied description of appearance in English.
Hair:
- dark − dark;
- blond − light;
- darkblond, blond-brown - blond;
- red − redheads;
- dyed − dyed;
- thick − thick;
- straight − straight;
- curly − curly;
- wavy − wavy;
- shoulder-length - shoulder length;
- bald - bald head, bald.
Eyes:
- brown − brown;
- black − black;
- blue − blue;
- light blue − blue;
- green − green.
Useful phrases to describe facial features:
- thin eyebrows − thin eyebrows;
- thick / long eyelashes - thick / long eyelashes;
- full / thin lips - full / thin lips;
- snub / straight / bulbous nose
Special marks
Without mentioning special features, the description of appearance in English would be incomplete.
- mole − mole;
- dimple − dimple;
- freckles − freckles;
- wrinkles − wrinkles;
- moustache − mustache;
- beard − beard;
- tattoo − tattoo;
- scar - scar.
Training to describe appearance
You can play a game with friends who are also learning English: the host thinks of any of those present in the room and describes his appearance; The task of the rest is to guess who it is. Such an exercise is useful when you have already mastered the basic phrases and speech structures for creating a verbal portrait. If there is no skill yet, then a good training will be a description of the appearance of people in a photo (for example, from magazines): first written, then oral.
For example, here is a description of appearance in English (see photo).
She is a young pretty girl in her early twenties. She's got beautiful blue eyes and elegant dark eyebrows. Her shoulder-length hair is dark brown and straight. She's got full lips and broad nose. Her face is all freckled. (She is a young beautiful girl in her early twenties. She has beautiful blue eyes and graceful dark eyebrows. She has shoulder-length hair, blond and straight. She has full lips and a wide nose. Her face is covered in freckles.)
