Describing Appearances: Mastering Adjectives for Looks
The most useful adjectives for looks are attractive, plain, striking, tall, slim, stocky, wavy, freckled, pale and well-dressed, but the right word depends on what you are describing: the overall impression, the face, the build, the hair, the skin or the clothes. Below they are grouped that way, each with a sentence about a person’s appearance, followed by a quick picker, words that are easy to misuse, and a short practice set.
Quick picker: which word do you need?
- Someone good-looking: attractive, good-looking, handsome, pretty, beautiful, gorgeous, striking
- Someone neither beautiful nor ugly: plain, ordinary, unremarkable, average-looking
- Height and build: tall, short, slim, slender, lanky, stocky, muscular, plump, petite, broad-shouldered
- The face: round, oval, angular, freckled, chiselled, wrinkled, high-cheekboned
- Hair: curly, wavy, straight, thick, thinning, greying, bald, cropped, shoulder-length
- Skin: fair, pale, olive, dark, tanned, weathered, freckled, rosy
- Clothes and grooming: well-dressed, smart, scruffy, casual, elegant, immaculate, dishevelled
Adjectives for overall looks
These give the first impression. Most are opinions, so they usually come first when you stack adjectives (“a striking tall woman” sounds odd; “a tall, striking woman” and “a striking woman, tall and dark” both work, but opinion words tend to lead: “an attractive young man”).
| Adjective | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| attractive | pleasant to look at; works for anyone | He was an attractive man in his forties with a quick smile. |
| good-looking | attractive, slightly informal | Her brother is good-looking and knows it. |
| handsome | attractive, usually of men; of women it suggests strong features | Her grandfather had been handsome in a stern, old-fashioned way. |
| pretty | attractive in a delicate way, usually of women and girls | She had a pretty, heart-shaped face. |
| beautiful | very attractive; stronger than pretty | Even at eighty she was beautiful. |
| gorgeous | extremely attractive, informal and enthusiastic | You look gorgeous in that colour. |
| stunning | so attractive that people notice at once | She looked stunning at the wedding. |
| striking | noticeable and memorable, not always conventionally pretty | With his white hair and black eyebrows, he was a striking figure. |
| dashing | attractive and stylish, of a man; a little old-fashioned | He looked dashing in his uniform. |
| elegant | graceful and tastefully dressed | An elegant woman in a grey coat stepped off the train. |
| plain | not attractive, but not ugly; a polite word | She had been a plain child and grew into a striking woman. |
| ordinary-looking | nothing unusual about the appearance | The thief was so ordinary-looking that no witness could describe him. |
| unattractive | not pleasant to look at; a direct but neutral word | He thought the haircut made him look unattractive. |
| ugly | very unattractive; usually rude about a person | The troll in the story was ugly and kind. |
| youthful | looking younger than one’s age | At fifty she still had a youthful face. |
| haggard | looking tired, worried or ill | After three nights at the hospital he looked haggard. |
Adjectives for the face
Many face words are compounds with a hyphen before the noun: a round-faced boy, a blue-eyed baby. For more, see our full list of adjectives for a face and adjectives for eyes.
| Adjective | Describes | Example |
|---|---|---|
| round / oval / square | face shape | He had a round face and small, lively eyes. |
| angular | a face with sharp bones and lines | Her angular face looked severe until she laughed. |
| chiselled | strong, clearly defined features, often of a man’s jaw | The actor’s chiselled jaw was on every poster. |
| delicate | small, fine features | She had delicate features and very dark eyes. |
| almond-shaped | eyes | Her almond-shaped eyes were grey-green. |
| piercing | eyes that seem to look right through you | The teacher had piercing blue eyes. |
| close-set / wide-set | distance between the eyes | His close-set eyes gave him a worried look. |
| bushy / arched / thin | eyebrows | Bushy eyebrows nearly hid his eyes. |
| aquiline / snub / crooked | nose (hooked / short and turned up / bent) | She had an aquiline nose and a wide mouth. |
| full / thin | lips | He had thin lips that rarely smiled. |
| high | cheekbones | She had high cheekbones and a narrow chin. |
| prominent / square / weak | jaw or chin | A square jaw made him look stubborn. |
| freckled | skin with small brown spots | A freckled boy grinned at the camera. |
| wrinkled / lined | age lines | Her lined face was brown from years of gardening. |
| clean-shaven / bearded / stubbly | facial hair | He arrived clean-shaven for the interview. |
Adjectives for height and build
Words about body size carry strong connotations. Slim and slender are compliments; skinny and bony are not. Plump and curvy are gentler than overweight, and fat is usually rude. Our page of adjectives for body goes further.
| Adjective | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| tall / short | height | She was tall enough to see over the crowd. |
| of medium height | neither tall nor short (a phrase, used after the noun) | The suspect is a man of medium height. |
| slim / slender | thin in an attractive way | A slim woman in running clothes passed us. |
| skinny / bony | very thin, often too thin | He was a skinny teenager with enormous feet. |
| lanky | tall, thin and a little awkward | A lanky boy folded himself into the back seat. |
| petite | small and slim, of a woman | The petite singer had a huge voice. |
| stocky | short, broad and solid | The stocky farmer lifted the bale easily. |
| muscular / athletic | strong, with visible muscle / fit and well-proportioned | She had the athletic build of a swimmer. |
| broad-shouldered | wide across the shoulders | A broad-shouldered man filled the doorway. |
| well-built | large and strong (of a man), or politely, large | The bouncer was a well-built man in a black jacket. |
| plump / chubby | pleasantly rounded / round, often of babies | The plump baker wiped flour from her hands. |
| curvy | with a noticeable waist and hips | The dress suited her curvy figure. |
| portly / stout | rather fat, usually of an older man; formal | A portly gentleman dozed in the armchair. |
| frail | thin and weak, often from age or illness | Her frail grandmother walked with a stick. |
| statuesque | tall, dignified and well-proportioned, of a woman | The statuesque model wore flat shoes. |
Adjectives for hair
Hair adjectives cover colour, texture, length and style. “Blonde” is the usual spelling for women and often for hair in general; “blond” is used for men in US English. “Brunette” is a noun or adjective for a woman with dark brown hair; for the hair itself say dark brown. More in adjectives for hair.
| Adjective | Type | Example |
|---|---|---|
| blonde / fair / red / auburn / jet-black / grey | colour | She had auburn hair that turned copper in the sun. |
| greying / thinning / receding | change with age | He had thinning hair and a receding hairline. |
| curly / wavy / straight / frizzy | texture | Her curly hair turned frizzy in the rain. |
| thick / fine / coarse / silky / glossy | feel and shine | The baby had fine, silky hair. |
| long / shoulder-length / short / cropped | length | He wore his hair cropped close to the head. |
| bald / shaved | no hair | Her uncle was completely bald by thirty. |
| braided / plaited / tied-back / spiky | style | She wore her braided hair in a bun. |
| messy / tousled / unkempt / neat | tidiness | He rolled out of bed with tousled hair. |
Adjectives for skin
When describing skin colour, plain, respectful words work best: fair, pale, light, olive, brown, dark. Avoid food comparisons (“chocolate”, “caramel”) for real people; many readers find them objectifying.
| Adjective | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| fair / pale | light skin / lighter than usual, sometimes from illness | Her fair skin burned after ten minutes in the sun. He looked pale after the news. |
| olive | light brown with a green or golden tone | He had olive skin and black hair. |
| dark / brown | deeper skin tones | She had dark skin and a wide, warm smile. |
| tanned | darkened by the sun | They came back from the beach tanned and relaxed. |
| rosy / ruddy | pink and healthy / red, often from outdoor life or drink | The children had rosy cheeks from the cold. The fisherman had a ruddy face. |
| smooth / clear / flawless | without marks | She had clear skin even as a teenager. |
| weathered / leathery | rough and lined from sun and wind | The sailor’s weathered hands were covered in scars. |
| blotchy / spotty | uneven patches / pimples | Crying left her face blotchy. |
Adjectives for clothes and grooming
| Adjective | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| well-dressed / smart | wearing good, tidy clothes | A well-dressed couple waited at the next table. |
| elegant / chic / stylish | graceful and fashionable | She looked chic in a plain black dress. |
| casual | relaxed, informal | He was in casual clothes: jeans and a hoodie. |
| immaculate / neat | perfectly clean and tidy | The waiter wore an immaculate white jacket. |
| scruffy / shabby | untidy / worn out | He turned up in a scruffy old jumper. |
| dishevelled | with clothes and hair in disorder | She arrived dishevelled after running for the bus. |
| flashy / showy | expensive-looking in a way meant to impress | He wore a flashy gold watch. |
| understated / modest | simple, not drawing attention | Her understated grey suit fitted perfectly. |
Putting it together: describing a person
A good description picks two or three telling details rather than listing every feature. Compare:
- Too much: She was a tall, slim, beautiful, blonde, blue-eyed, fair-skinned, elegant young woman.
- Better: She was tall and fair, with the kind of pale blue eyes that make people look twice.
Some ready-made sentences:
- He was a stocky, red-faced man with a grey beard and a booming laugh.
- A lanky teenager in a scruffy hoodie slouched by the door.
- My aunt is petite and dark-haired, and always immaculately dressed.
- The witness described a man of medium height, clean-shaven, with short, greying hair.
When you put several adjectives before a noun, opinion comes before size, age, shape and colour: a handsome tall young man is unusual, a handsome young man and a tall young man are natural. See commas between adjectives for when to use a comma.
Words that are easy to misuse
- Handsome vs pretty: “pretty” for a man sounds either feminine or teasing; “handsome” for a woman suggests strong, dignified features, not delicate ones.
- Striking: means eye-catching. “She had a striking resemblance to her mother” is wrong; say “a striking likeness” or “she looked strikingly like her mother”.
- Fair: can mean light-skinned or light-haired. “A fair girl” is ambiguous, so say fair-haired or fair-skinned if it matters.
- Skinny vs slim: skinny is often negative; slim is a compliment.
- Brunette: describes a person (usually a woman), not hair. Not “she had brunette hair” in careful writing; “she had dark brown hair” or “she was a brunette”.
- Looks vs look: “his good looks” (plural noun, attractiveness); “she had a tired look” (expression).
Common mistakes
- Doubling up compound adjectives: not “She had black-haired hair” or “a full-lipped mouth” but “She had black hair” / “She was full-lipped” / “She had full lips”.
- Missing hyphen before the noun: “a blue eyed boy” → “a blue-eyed boy”. After the verb, use the plain words: “the boy had blue eyes”.
- Comma between unequal adjectives: “piercing, blue eyes” → “piercing blue eyes” (you would not say “piercing and blue eyes”).
- Look + adverb: “She looks beautifully” → “She looks beautiful”. After look meaning “seem”, use an adjective.
- Describing objects with people words: “the sunset was handsome” sounds odd; for scenery use beautiful, stunning, spectacular.
Practice
Choose the best word.
- He’s very ______; women often stop him in the street. (handsome / plain)
- She looked ______ after working all night. (haggard / chic)
- A ______ boy, all arms and legs, ran past. (lanky / stocky)
- The suspect is ______, about 1.75 metres. (of medium height / statuesque)
- Correct the error: “He has a striking resemblance to his father.”
- Correct the error: “She had long brunette hair.”
- Correct the error: “You look wonderfully tonight.”
Answers: 1 handsome. 2 haggard. 3 lanky. 4 of medium height. 5 “He bears a striking resemblance to his father” or “He looks strikingly like his father”. 6 “She had long dark brown hair” (or “She was a brunette with long hair”). 7 “You look wonderful tonight.”
Quick answers
What is a polite word for someone who is not good-looking?
Plain or ordinary-looking. Both are softer than unattractive or ugly.
What adjectives describe a man’s looks?
Handsome, good-looking, rugged, chiselled, clean-shaven, broad-shouldered, stocky, lanky, well-built and well-dressed are common choices.
What is a neutral word for overweight?
Heavy, large or well-built are neutral; plump and curvy are gentle; fat is usually rude when said about someone.
Looking for more? Try adjectives for appearance.
Checked against Merriam-Webster, the Chicago Manual of Style and the AP Stylebook. Spotted an error? Tell us — see our editorial policy.
