EduCareer

A2 (Elementary)Writing

Describing People

Describing people is a key writing skill - for stories, introductions, and everyday descriptions. English uses different verbs for different kinds of description: be for states, have for features, and the present continuous for clothes someone is wearing. This lesson brings them together.

Describing people is a key writing skill – for stories, introductions, and everyday descriptions. English uses different verbs for different kinds of description: be for states, have for features, and the present continuous for clothes someone is wearing. This lesson brings them together.

1. The three describing verbs

Verb Use it for Example
be (is/are) age, height, character James is tall and friendly.
have / has features (hair, eyes) Emma has brown eyes.
be + wearing clothes right now Thomas is wearing a blue shirt.

2. Adjective order

When you use two or more adjectives before a noun, English has a usual order: opinion → size → age → colour → origin.

  • a beautiful old house (opinion + age)
  • long black hair (size + colour)
  • a nice young teacher (opinion + age)

3. Describing character & personality

Use be + a character adjective: kind, friendly, shy, honest, funny, hard-working, calm, generous.

  • She is very hard-working and kind.

4. Building a description

Model descriptionMy friend Emma is nineteen years old. She is quite tall and she has long black hair and brown eyes. She is very friendly and hard-working. Today she is wearing a green dress and white shoes.
Tutor tipKeep the three verbs separate: use have for features (“She has blue eyes,” not “She is blue eyes”) and be for qualities (“She is tall,” not “She has tall”). Also, in English the adjective comes before the noun: “a tall man,” not “a man tall” – the opposite of the order used in many other languages.

Examples from EduCareer

  • James is a tall, friendly man. He has short black hair.
  • Emma has a kind smile and is very patient.
  • Today Thomas is wearing a grey jacket and glasses.
Common mistakes

She is brown eyes.  →  She has brown eyes.

He has tall.  →  He is tall.

a man tall  →  a tall man

She wears a red dress now.  →  She is wearing a red dress now.

Check your understanding

Answer the questions below. You will see instantly if you are right.

1.Which verb describes features like hair and eyes?
Use "have" for features: has brown eyes.
2.Which verb describes height and character?
Use "be" for states: is tall, is kind.
3.Which is correct?
Features → has.
4.Which is correct?
A quality → is tall.
5.What describes clothes right now?
Clothes now → is wearing.
6.Correct adjective order:
size before colour: long black hair.
7.Which is correct?
Adjective before noun: a tall man.
8.Which is a character adjective?
"kind" describes personality.
9.Which is correct?
has + feature.
10.Fix: "She wears a red dress now."
Right now → is wearing.
11.Choose the correct order.
opinion before age: beautiful old.
12.Which sentence uses "be" for character correctly?
is + character adjective.
13."James ___ short black hair."
Feature → has.
14."Emma ___ very patient."
Quality → is.
15.Which is correct?
opinion (nice) before age (young).
16.Which describes personality?
"hard-working" is a character trait.
17.Fix: "He is glasses today."
Clothes/accessories now → is wearing.
18.Which sentence is fully correct?
is (quality) + has (feature).
19.Where does the adjective go in English?
Before the noun: a tall man.
20.Best A2 description sentence:
Correct use of is (qualities) and has (features), joined with "and".

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Continue practising

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