Describing Character: Adjectives for Personalities

Adjectives for personalities describe how a person usually thinks, feels and behaves: kind, outgoing, shy, honest, stubborn, easygoing, ambitious, witty, moody and reliable are common examples. The quickest way to find the right one is to ask what side of the person you mean: how they treat others, how social they are, how they handle work, how they react to stress, or how they think. This page groups personality adjectives that way, marks which ones are positive, neutral or negative, and gives example sentences, a quick picker, polite alternatives to harsh words and a short practice.

Personality words describe lasting traits, not one moment. She is angry is a mood; she is short-tempered is a personality. Keep that difference in mind when you describe a character in a story or write a reference for a colleague.

Quick picker

How a person treats other people

Positive

• kind – wants to help and avoids hurting others. My neighbour is kind enough to water our plants when we’re away.
• considerate – thinks about how others feel. He’s considerate: he always texts if he’s running late.
• generous – gives time, money or praise freely. She is generous with her advice to new staff.
• loyal – stays on your side. A loyal friend defended me when I wasn’t there.
• compassionate – feels and acts on sympathy for people who suffer. The compassionate nurse sat with the patient all night.
• tactful – says difficult things without hurting people. Our manager is tactful when she gives feedback.
• trustworthy / honest – tells the truth and keeps promises. He’s honest even when it costs him.

Negative

• selfish – thinks mainly of themselves. It was selfish of him to take the last seat without asking.
• inconsiderate – ignores others’ needs. Playing loud music at 2 a.m. is inconsiderate.
• manipulative – influences people dishonestly for their own gain.
• spiteful – wants to hurt or annoy people. She left a spiteful comment under his post.
• two-faced – friendly to your face, unkind behind your back.

For a longer list in this area, see our pages of adjectives for kind people and adjectives for kindness.

How social a person is

• outgoing – enjoys meeting people and talks easily. Our outgoing new colleague knew everyone’s name by Friday.
• sociable – likes company. He’s sociable, but he also needs time alone.
• gregarious – very sociable, loves groups; slightly formal. Gregarious people often enjoy large parties.
• extroverted / introverted – gets energy from people / from time alone. These are neutral; introverted does not mean shy. She’s introverted but a confident public speaker.
• shy – nervous with people, especially strangers. The shy boy took weeks to speak up in class.
• reserved – does not show feelings or share much. My grandfather was reserved, but his letters were warm.
• warm – friendly in a way that makes people feel welcome. She has a warm personality.
• aloof / standoffish – cold and distant, not interested in others. He seemed aloof at first, but he was just tired.
• clingy – wants too much attention or closeness; informal. The puppy is clingy when we leave the house.

Work, responsibility and drive

• hardworking – puts in effort. She’s the most hardworking person on the team.
• reliable / dependable – you can count on them. We need a reliable person to lock up each night.
• conscientious – careful to do a job properly. A conscientious editor checks every name and date.
• organised – plans and keeps things in order. He’s so organised that his inbox is always empty.
• ambitious – wants success; positive in most contexts, but can suggest ruthlessness. An ambitious young lawyer, she worked every weekend.
• perfectionist – an adjective as well as a noun (perfectionist tendencies); not satisfied with anything less than perfect, which can slow work down.
• proactive – acts before being asked. A proactive assistant books the room before the meeting is confirmed.
• lazy – avoids effort. A softer version: laid-back about deadlines.
• careless – makes mistakes through lack of attention.

Emotions and reactions

• calm / level-headed – stays steady under pressure. A level-headed pilot kept the passengers calm.
• easygoing / laid-back – relaxed, not easily upset. My roommate is easygoing about mess.
• patient – can wait or put up with problems without getting annoyed. You have to be patient to teach a teenager to drive.
• resilient – recovers well from difficulty. Children can be remarkably resilient.
• sensitive – notices feelings deeply; can mean caring or easily hurt. He’s sensitive to criticism. / She’s sensitive to other people’s moods.
• moody – mood changes often and without warning. Teenagers are often described as moody.
• short-tempered / hot-headed – gets angry quickly. The short-tempered chef shouted at his staff.
• volatile – unpredictable, may suddenly become angry or violent.
• cheerful / optimistic – usually in a good mood / expects good things.
• pessimistic / cynical – expects the worst / distrusts people’s motives.

How a person thinks

• curious – wants to learn and ask questions. A curious child takes the radio apart to see how it works.
• creative / imaginative – has new ideas. She’s a creative problem-solver.
• open-minded – willing to consider new ideas. Try to stay open-minded about the new plan.
• analytical – breaks problems down logically.
• practical / down-to-earth – sensible and realistic. My aunt is down-to-earth; she’d rather fix a leak than talk about it.
• wise – good judgement from experience.
• stubborn – refuses to change their mind. A positive spin: determined, persistent.
• narrow-minded – unwilling to accept other views.
• naive / gullible – lacks experience / believes things too easily.

Confidence and courage

• confident / self-assured – believes in their own ability. A confident speaker doesn’t rush.
• modest / humble – doesn’t boast. Despite winning, he was modest about his part.
• brave / courageous – faces fear. It was brave of her to report the problem.
• bold – willing to take risks; can be praise or criticism.
• arrogant – thinks they are better than others.
• timid / insecure – lacks courage / doubts their own worth.

Humour

• funny / hilarious – makes people laugh.
• witty – quick and clever with words. His witty replies made the interview fun to watch.
• playful – likes to tease and joke gently.
• dry – funny in a serious-faced, understated way. She has a dry sense of humour.
• sarcastic – says the opposite of what they mean, often to mock.

How to describe someone’s personality

A string of adjectives tells the reader little. Pair each trait with something the person does:

• Weak: My brother is kind, funny and lazy.
• Better: My brother is kind: he once drove two hours to bring me a forgotten passport. He is also funny, and lazy about everything except cooking.

When describing a man or woman with depth, try thoughtful, perceptive, deep, insightful, complex, unconventional or original. “A thoughtful, unconventional thinker with a dry wit” says a lot in a few words.

For fiction, mix a strength and a flaw: brave but reckless, loyal but jealous, brilliant but arrogant. Readers believe characters with contradictions. Our page of adjectives for character traits has more pairs, and adjectives for character covers moral qualities.

In a reference or CV, stick to positive traits you can back up: reliable, organised, proactive, collaborative.

Personality words for particular situations

Describing a partner

When people describe a partner, or the partner they hope to meet, these words come up most: affectionate, supportive, loyal, attentive, easygoing, thoughtful, playful, trustworthy. Warning signs are usually described with controlling, possessive, jealous, distant or emotionally unavailable.

He’s supportive and patient, and he makes me laugh every day.

Describing a leader or manager

Useful words: decisive, fair, approachable, visionary, inspiring, firm, diplomatic. The negative side: authoritarian, indecisive, micromanaging (an -ing adjective formed from the verb), unapproachable.

Our new head teacher is approachable but firm: she listens, then decides.

Describing a child

Teachers and parents often use lively, inquisitive, energetic, sociable, sensitive, strong-willed, imaginative. In school reports, chatty and easily distracted are the polite forms of “talks too much” and “doesn’t concentrate”.

Describing yourself

In an interview or a profile, choose two or three traits and give evidence for each. I’m organised (I ran the club’s accounts for three years) and calm under pressure. Words like perfectionist or workaholic are best avoided; interviewers hear them as hidden flaws.

Polite ways to say negative things

Words that are easy to misuse

• Sensible vs sensitive. Sensible means practical and reasonable; sensitive means emotionally aware or easily hurt. Many learners swap them.
• Introverted vs shy. An introvert prefers quiet; a shy person feels anxious with others. A person can be one without the other.
• Ambitious is usually positive in English, unlike in some languages where it sounds greedy.
• Nice is vague. Say friendly, kind, polite or easy to talk to instead.
• Sympathetic means understanding someone’s problems, not “pleasant” (a common false friend for speakers of Spanish, French and German).

Common mistakes

Practice

Choose the best word.

1. She never panics in an emergency. She is (level-headed / moody).
2. He always remembers birthdays and asks how you are. He is (considerate / aloof).
3. She won’t change her mind, even when she is wrong. She is (stubborn / open-minded).
4. He talks to everyone at parties. He is (outgoing / reserved).
5. Her jokes are quick and clever. She is (witty / gullible).
6. You can always count on him. He is (reliable / volatile).

Answers: 1 level-headed, 2 considerate, 3 stubborn, 4 outgoing, 5 witty, 6 reliable.

FAQ

What are the most common personality adjectives?

Kind, friendly, funny, shy, honest, confident, lazy, hardworking, calm and moody are among the ones learners meet first.

What words describe a good personality?

Warm, kind, honest, generous, reliable, patient, cheerful and open-minded.

What is the difference between personality and character?

Personality is how someone comes across: outgoing or quiet, funny or serious. Character is about moral qualities: honest, fair, loyal, cruel. A person can have a charming personality and a weak character. In everyday speech the two overlap, and many adjectives (kind, selfish, brave) fit both.

How many adjectives should I use to describe someone?

Two or three well-chosen ones, each with an example, are more convincing than a list of ten.

Is “personality” ever an adjective?

No, it is a noun. It can modify another noun (personality test, personality type), but you cannot say He is very personality. Say He has a strong personality.

New to adjectives in general? Start with what an adjective is.

Checked against Merriam-Webster, the Chicago Manual of Style and the AP Stylebook. Spotted an error? Tell us — see our editorial policy.