Can you think of the last time you told someone how you really felt at that moment? What kinds of words did you use to express your feelings?
Chances are, you used a positive or a negative adjective to describe your feelings about that specific person, place, thing, or idea. Whenever you share your feelings with someone, you use describing words, also known as adjectives or words that describe nouns. These words play an important role in the English language and help describe things and communicate how you think and feel.
Without noun describers, it’s difficult to express how you feel about the people, places, and things around you. What’s great about descriptive words is that you can use them to describe your own unique feelings, and there are so many different ones to choose from depending on the topic or situation.
Two types of adjectives that help us do this are positive adjectives and negative adjectives. Let’s dive in to see how these types of words can help you better express yourself both in conversation and in your writing.Every describing word has meaning. Some evoke “good” feelings, while others evoke “bad” feelings. By using positive adjectives and negative adjectives, you express your thoughts and help someone understand how you feel. These words can also potentially affect those you’re speaking about and speaking with. That’s why it’s always important to choose your words carefully.
Let’s look at an example:- He’s very competitive.
This sentence probably forms a good mental image in your mind. Being competitive means someone is focused, engaged, and self-determined. You can understand that the person has a desire to be successful, without endangering anyone.
Next, consider this sentence:
- He’s very combative.
Combative shares a similar meaning to the word competitive, yet the “bad” traits outweigh the good. The mental image you get from this sentence is perhaps someone who wants to fight and argue. The person is not only competitive, but they are also hostile and aggressive. Competitive is a positive adjective that starts with C while combative is a negative adjective that starts with C.
As you can tell, describing words matter. That’s why it’s important to know different words that describe both the good and the bad things in life. To build your vocabulary, let’s learn more about positive adjectives and negative adjectives.
What are Positive Adjectives?
Positive adjectives describe people, places, and things in a positive way. Using these noun modifiers, you can express emotions such as satisfaction, love, amusement, hope, and more.
Here are a few examples of sentences that use good emotional words:
- Steve is happy today.
- Her wise words fired up the crowd.
- Suzy’s always cooperative with her classmates.
In addition to letting you describe someone or something, you can also use noun modifiers to motivate others. When you speak to someone with positive describing words, you can help to increase their confidence and to build them up.
Here are some additional words you can use when describing someone or something:
- You’re a spectacular team captain.
- Look at your perfect math test grade.
- That outfit looks terrific on you.
How do these sentences make you feel? Most people enjoy hearing words of encouragement. Without positive adjectives, you can only make generic statements that tell the facts and nothing more.
Take a look at these examples:
- You’re a team captain!
- Look at your math test grade.
- I haven’t seen that outfit before.
As you can tell from these sentences, you can’t share your feelings without using describing words. But it’s important not to select just any word, but rather the right word. Because just one describing word can change the meaning of your whole sentence.
However, life isn’t always positive, and sometimes you need to express something negative. Perhaps you want to share feelings about people, places, or things because you’re unhappy with the way something is. In this case, you’ll probably use negative adjectives
Below are 30 of the most common positive adjectives. I hope that they help you with your teaching, or learning of English
- adaptablecapable of fitting a particular situation or useWhen Connie's parents divorced, she proved herself to be adaptable. It wasn't easy, but she learned how to cope with this big change.People who are adaptable can overcome change easily.
- adventurouswilling to undertake new and daring enterprisesPeople who are adventurous seek out the fun in life. They love to try something new--sometimes an act that others would find scary. Adventurous people love to travel and try new foods at a restaurant.
- affectionatehaving or displaying warmth or fondnessIf you like to snuggle up next to someone, then you are affectionate.
- ambitioushaving a strong desire for success or achievementAmbitious people try to get ahead in life--they look for opportunities to better their life. For the most part, this has a positive feeling, but in some people, ambition is too strong and they hurt people along the way to get what they want.
- amiablediffusing warmth and friendlinessAmiable people are affable. They are kind, warm, and friendly.
- compassionateshowing or having sympathy for another's sufferingSomeone who is compassionate feels a strong sense of sadness when they see others who are suffering. A compassionate person always tries to do something to help ease the suffering. You would find a compassionate person helping out in a homeless shelter.
- considerateshowing concern for the rights and feelings of othersA considerate person looks out for other people. They often allow someone else to have the last piece of pie or they hold the door open for another person.
- courageousable to face and deal with danger or fear without flinchingA courageous person is brave. They are the type of person to run into a burning building. They are also likely to get involved to stop a bullying situation.
- courteouscharacterized by politeness and gracious good mannersCourteous people say, "Please," "Thank you" and "No, thanks." Their manners are present because they are nice toward other people.
- diligentcharacterized by care and perseverance in carrying out tasksDiligent people work hard until a job is done. They take great care in doing things right. They don't give up.
- empatheticshowing ready comprehension of others' statesSomeone who is empathetic is able to understand people better because they see things from the other person's perspective.
When it comes to working with children it is important to be empathetic. My daughters might be upset for a ridiculous reason, but I can only help them if I understand why they truly feel as they do. - exuberantunrestrained, especially with regard to feelingsAn exuberant person is full of joy and has a lot of energy to show it.
- frankcharacterized by directness in manner or speechSomeone who is frank "tells it like it is." It might not be pretty, but they will tell you straight.
- generouswilling to give and share unstintinglyA generous person shares what they have willingly. It might be a cupcake or their time--either way, they're happy to share.
- gregarioustemperamentally seeking and enjoying the company of othersGregarious people are fun to be around and they like being around other people. They are the "life of the party."
- impartialfree from undue bias or preconceived opinionsImpartial people are fair. They are able to remain neutral before forming an opinion. Lawyers like to have impartial people on juries so that they can fairly weight the evidence.
- intuitiveobtained through instinctive knowledgeAn intuitive person operates by instinct. They sort of have a special feel for a situation. The best basketball players are intuitive when it comes to finding the open teammate.
A lot of teaching is intuitive--the best teachers just know how to present things so that kids understand. (Related words: intuition and intuitively). - inventivemarked by independence and creativity in thought or actionSince the band's drummer did not show up for the concert, they got inventive--they asked members of the audience to come up and clap and play tambourines.Inventive people are able to find creative, ingenious solutions to problems. They might be able to repair a car with a paper clip.
One of my favorite quotes is by Benjamin Franklin: "Necessity is the mother of invention." In other words, when there is a strong need, an invention to fill that need usually occurs. - passionatehaving or expressing strong emotionsPassionate people have a real love for something in their life. They embrace this or many activities with a strong feeling. What are you passionate about?
- persistentstubbornly unyieldingPersistent people never give up. Even when the odds are stacked against them, the work tirelessly until the goal is achieved.
- philosophicalmeeting trouble with level-headed detachmentPeople, who are philosophical often wonder, "In the grand scheme of things, is it worth it?" Philosophical people tend to look at the larger picture of life and stay above trivial situations.
When teaching it is important to remain philosophical about a student's success. A teacher has a large part to play in a student's success, but ultimately I cannot "make" him learn. Actually learning something is up to him. - practicalguided by experience and observation rather than theoryPeople who are practical look at things is a reasonable, level-headed way. They are likely to take a coat with them in case it is cold--they know they can take it off if it is too hot--they're just practical.
- rationalhaving its source in or being guided by the intellectRational people are practical. They make rational decisions based on their logical reasoning about a situation. They don't base decisions on emotions.
- reliableworthy of trustSomeone who is reliable is trustworthy and dependable. You can "count on" a reliable person.
- resourcefuladroit or imaginativeA resourceful person uses creativity and the things around them to tackle a problem. They see solutions (sometimes obvious ones) that others don't see.
- sensibleable to feel or perceiveA sensible person is a clear thinking, reasonable person.
- sincereopen and genuine; not deceitfulA sincere person is honest in their feelings toward others. (Antonym: insincerely).
- sympatheticexpressing compassion or friendly fellow feelingsYou are sympathetic when you feel sorry for someone else. You send a sympathy card when a friend loses a loved one because you want her to know that you feel sorry for her loss.
Their loss upsets you because you are sympathetic. - unassumingnot arrogantAn unassuming person is awesome but does not go around bragging about it. In fact, she might not even know that she's so awesome. A girl might be a great artist, but is unassuming about her skill.
- wittydemonstrating striking cleverness and humorSomeone who is witty combines humor with intelligence. A witty observation is funny but also sophisticated. You need to be smart to understand a witty person's jokes.
Due to the complexities of English, nobody, native or second language learner can honestly brag about having a proficient level of the language without a solid knowledge of Idioms. Every day, in almost every conversation, native speakers will use idioms more than someone who is new to the language, simply because they are more familiar with them and know the context in which they should be used. Therefore, this means that when you, the second language learner uses an idiom in the correct context, that you have a more proficient level of English and therefore you sound more like a native speaker. Below is a list of 50 of the most important general idioms necessary for traveling the B2 to C2 language learning journey. With these idioms, you will be able to listen and speak more like a native speaker, therefore, enhancing your ability to communicate effectively. Study tips for how to learn idioms. The 60 most important phrasal verbs for achieving a B2 to C2 level of English. I...
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