A list of descriptive adjectives for kids can help students better understand this part of speech and improve their writing. Describing words for kids focus on adjectives children have heard of or words that are easy for them to pronounce and spell.
What Are Descriptive Adjectives and Words?
Words that describe people, places, and things, or nouns, are called adjectives. You can remember this by thinking "an adjective adds something."
- A descriptive adjective is one of three main types of adjectives.
- Descriptive adjectives, or describing words, give details about a subject.
- Descriptive adjectives can help you understand how something looks, how many there are, what size it is, or what it's made of.
Examples of Descriptive Adjectives for Children
Having an extensive list of descriptive adjectives handy can help kids improve their vocabulary skills. You can look at a list of adjectives to see how some are describing words and others tell you different details about a noun.
Adjectives to Describe a Person's Appearance
If you need an adjective to describe a child or an adult, you can use words that give details about their appearance, size, or age. Try to use positive words that describe a person whenever possible.
| Looks | Size | Age |
|---|---|---|
| Adorable | Average | Ancient |
| Attractive | Buff | Baby-faced |
| Beautiful | Curvy | Elderly |
| Cute | Fit | Mature |
| Gorgeous | Petite | Modern |
| Handsome | Tall | Old |
| Hot | Short | Senior |
| Lovely | Skinny | Young |
| Picture-perfect | Slim | Youthful |
Descriptive Adjectives for Size
If you're describing a building, animal, or object, you might want to provide details about exactly what size your subject is.
| Big | Small | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Colossal | Baby | Broad |
| Enormous | Itty-bitty | Circular |
| Gargantuan | Little | Curved |
| Giant | Mini | Deep |
| Gigantic | Miniature | Flat |
| Huge | Petite | Hollow |
| Humongous | Teensy | Narrow |
| Large | Teeny | Square |
| Massive | Tiny | Straight |
| Tremendous | Wee | Triangular |
Adjectives to Describe Personality Traits
Whether it's how an animal or a person is acting, descriptive adjectives about personalities can be fun and useful.
| Adaptable | Adventurous | Affectionate |
| Aggressive | Artistic | Athletic |
| Bold | Brave | Calm |
| Cheerful | Confident | Clever |
| Determined | Eager | Faithful |
| Friendly | Generous | Helpful |
| Lively | Loving | Patient |
| Practical | Relaxed | Sociable |
| Thoughtful | Trustworthy | Understanding |
| Wild | Willing | Zany |
Adjectives to Describe Emotions and Feelings
Kids have lots of emotions, and they're often very big feelings. Different emotion words can help you share exactly how you are feeling.
| Angry | Bored | Content | Cranky |
| Delighted | Disappointed | Exhausted | Frightened |
| Frustrated | Furious | Glum | Jolly |
| Joyful | Merry | Sleepy | Tearful |
| Upset | Weak | Weary | Worn out |
Positive Descriptive Adjectives for Kids
In a world where you want to be kind and happy, positive describing words can help you be positive too.
| Acceptable | Agreeable | Amazing | Amicable |
| Awesome | Cool | Cordial | Excellent |
| Exceptional | Extraordinary | Fair | Friendly |
| Impressive | Kind | Likable | Magnificent |
| Memorable | Okay | Outstanding | Pleasant |
| Polite | Rare | Satisfied | Significant |
| Sweet | Well | Wonderful | Unique |
Printable List of Adjectives
Keeping a printable list of adjectives handy can help kids find new words to use during writing lessons or creative writing time. This list features nine categories that cover common adjectives such as words describing feelings and words describing size. Click on the image of the list to download and print it. If you need help downloading the printable list, check out these helpful tips.
Descriptive Adjective Teaching Tips
Learning adjectives can be a challenge for kids, but it can also be really fun. Look for creative ways to share adjective examples to make the most of these grammar lessons.
- Buy or print flash cards with descriptive adjectives on them. Hold up a picture of a person, animal, or other noun and let kids sort through the pile of cards to find a great describing word for that picture.
- After a child writes a paragraph or short story, circle all their adjectives and challenge them to come up with new adjectives to use in place of the circled ones.
- Use mad lib style writing activity to help kids explore a variety of adjectives with humor.
- Encourage kids to combine adjectives when describing items like saying "the adorable, brown dog" instead of just "the dog."
- Teach your child to use a thesaurus or kid's dictionary to liven up their writing and keep lists of new adjectives they discover.
- You can also try banning certain generic adjectives to help your child think outside the box to make his writing more lively.
Describe in Detail
Writing in elementary school is important because this is the time when kids really build their own vocabulary and writing style. Each descriptive adjective means something very specific, and kids can explore lists of words to find the right adjective to use at the moment. Learning to describe things using proper details will help kids improve their communication skills and have fun with the English language.
