PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION

A physical description of a person is needed in certain situations, such as when we have just been robbed and we need to tell the police what the robber looks like. We also need to have a description of the person we are going to meet at the airport, if we have never seen him/her before. If someone asks you what a certain person looks like (for instance your mother or your friend), what do you say?

A. General Description
When we describe a person, we usually mention the general features first; for example, Maria is tall and dark; she is good-looking.
The following groups of words and phrases contain characteristics for a general description. Look them over.
(NOTE: in some cases, a word or phrase in one group can also belong to another group)

COMPLEXION:
HEIGHT:
AGE:
BUILD/FIGURE:

LOOKS: fair, dark
tall, short, of average height
old, young, elderly, middle-aged
small, tiny, bug, stocky, muscular, skinny, slim, slender, plump, fat, obese
attractive, beautiful, charming, pretty, cute, sexy, plain, ugly

Activity 1: Identifying physical characteristics for a general description
Now, pair up with a friend. First, give a general description of your friend. Next, do the same for yourself. Use the spaces provided below.

MY FRIEND

COMPLEXION:
HEIGHT:
AGE:
BUILD/FIGURE:
LOOKS:


ME

COMPLEXION:
HEIGHT:
AGE:
BUILD/FIGURE:
LOOKS:


B. A more Detailed Description
Besides general descriptions, we sometimes may need to give a more detailed description of a person’s physical features.
- Height, weight, and age
height : - Siti is 1.65 meters tall
or: Her height is 1.65 meters

weight : - She weighs about 55 kilograms
or: Her weight is about 55 kilograms

age : - Siti is 21 years old
or: She is 21

When we ask questions about someone’s height, weight, and age, we usually use the question word How or What. Look at the following questions and the answers.

QUESTIONS

- how tall are you?
- what’s your height?

- how much do you weigh?
- what’s your weight?

- how old are you?
- what’s your age? ANSWERS

- I’m 1.63 meters tall
- I’m 1.63

- I weigh 53 kilos
- My weight is 53 kilos

- I’m 19 years old
- I’m 19

Activity 2: Talking about people’s height, weight, and age
Complete the short dialogs below with either a question or an answer
1a. Doctor : How …………………………?
Mrs. Kus : He’s eleven
1b. Mira : Isn’t she still a teenager?
Nuri : ………………………………..
2a. Rudianto : How tall is Sara?
Sam : Sara? I guess …………………
2b. Mrs. Utoyo : Little Tito has really grown since I last saw him. What …………
Mrs. Tan : I measured him only last week. He’s 73 cm now.
3a. Tommy : Am I wrong, or have you really gained weight?
How much do you weigh now?
John : Yes, I’m afraid I’m rather overweight. I think …………………..
3b. Doctor : ……………………………………?
……………………………………?
Nurse : She is 1.55 meters tall, and she weighs 50 kilograms.


-Parts of the Body
To give a detailed description of a person’s physical features, we often describe parts of the body. What are the different parts of the body?
Activity 3: Identifying parts of the body
-eyebrow -forehead -arm -neck
-elbow -nose -hair -knee
-leg -ear -face -foot
-mouth -shoulder -hand -ankle
others….

Each person has special physical features. They are the characteristics that distinguish him/her from another person, or that make him/her look like somebody else. To say what a person looks like, we need to know the words that are used to give a physical description. For example, Andreas has black hair. His shoulders are narrow. He has long legs.
The WORD BANK below contains adjectives that we can use to describe a person’s physical features.

WORD BANK
ebony
blue
blond
dark brown
grey pale
bright
narrow
thinning
flabby chubby
kinky
flat
pointed
bald oblong
almond-shaped
angular
slanted
aquiline

Look at how the adjectives are used in sentences

HAIR:

FACE:

EYES:

NOSE:

CHEEKS:

EARS:

SHOULDERS:

LEGS: Short, curly

long, oval

small, bright

small, flat

chubby

small

narrow

slender  Win has short hair
OR: Her hair is curly
 James has a long face
OR: His face is oval
 Shana has small eyes
OR: Her eyes are bright
 Kino has a small nose
OR: His nose is flat
 Her cheeks are chubby
OR: She has chubby cheeks
 He has small ears
OR: His ears are small
 Anton has narrow shoulders
OR: His shoulders are narrow
 Rita has slender legs
OR: Her legs are slender



Activity 4: Describing parts of the body
Describe the physical features of someone you know. Use words from the WORD BANK and other words you have already learned.

C. Specific Facial Features
When we describe a person, we most often describe his/her facial features. Besides the adjectives in the WORD BANK, we can use nouns to describe a person. Look at the following nouns:

moustache beard sideburns ponytail freckles
dimple pug nose birthmark mole scar

Now look at the following description of someone’s face here and try to draw it:
James has a long face. His face is oval. He has a pug nose and small ears. James has a big beard, a thick moustache, sideburns, and also a mole on his left cheek.