Behavior and Trait Adjectives

Adjectives for Behaviour and Traits

• Adjectives with a negative connotation are followed by a minus sign (-). Positive connotations are followed by a plus sign (+). Neutral adjectives are indicated with both (-/+).
• All adjectives can be placed before or after a noun, often with a "to be" verb.
• Blunt (-/+): Saying what you think, even if it's impolite or hurtful. Example: "To be blunt, what he did was cowardly and pathetic."
• Brash (-): Annoyingly loud, overconfident, and aggressive.
• Calculating (-): Getting what you want through careful, clever planning, without caring about others.
• Callous (-): Cruel and heartless.
• Cantankerous (-): Bad-tempered, likely to argue about trivial matters.
• Cheerful (+): Happy and in a good mood.
• Curt (-): Abrupt and rude when speaking to others.
• Fickle (-): Not faithful or loyal to friends.
• Inquisitive (-/+):
• Always trying to find out about other people's lives through many questions.
• Interested in many things, wanting to learn more (often used for children).
• Meticulous (-/+): Very careful in details and making sure everything is correct.
• Persistent (-/+): Refusing to give up.
• Reckless (-): Doing dangerous things without considering the consequences. Reckless can also describe actions.
• Ruthless (-): Cruel, cold, and without mercy. Ruthless can also describe actions and decisions.
• Squeamish (-/+): Disliking the sight of unpleasant things like blood or needles.
• Sullen (-): Bad-tempered and not speaking much.
• Unscrupulous (-): Prepared to act immorally and dishonestly to get what you want.
• Volatile (-): Losing temper quickly and easily.
• Withdrawn (-/+): Quiet and disliking talking to others

Adjectives II

• • = used before a noun
• ** = used the verb "to be" **used before or after a noun
• *** = can be used before or after a noun
• Avid (*): Very enthusiastic (for people)
• Blatant (*): Very obvious and without shame or embarrassment (describing bad things).
• Breathtaking (***): Very beautiful, surprising, or impressive.
• Gripping (***): Very exciting, used for films and books.
• Harrowing (***): Shocking, making you feel very upset (not used to describe people).
• Lax (***): Not strict or careful enough (for safety measures, security, morals, discipline, laws, etc.).
• Lenient (***): Not strict, used to describe people in a position to punish (parents, teachers, etc.).
• Meteoric (***): Very sudden and quick (generally used with the noun "rise").
• Misleading (***): Giving the wrong idea or impression.
• Piercing (*): Loud and high-pitched (for noises).
• Prolific (***): Producing a large number of works (for artists, composers, and writers).
• **Sporadic (***):**Happening at irregular intervals.
• Staunch (*): Very loyal.
• Sweeping:
• Too general, therefore not valid (for statements and generalizations).
• Large and affecting everyone (for changes and reforms).
• Watertight: Impossible to prove wrong or argue against.
• Dreary (***): Boring and depressing.
• Dull (***): Boring, without life, excitement, or color.
• Mundane (***): Ordinary, boring, giving little satisfaction (often describing jobs).
• Tedious (***): Boring and often frustrating.
• Atrocious (***): Extremely bad.
• Dreadful (***): Very bad.
• Lousy (***): (Informal) very bad.
• Flawless (***): Perfect, with no faults.
• Impeccable (***): Perfect, faultless.
• Unblemished (*): Sth that has not been spoiled or harmed.
• Arduous (***): Tiring and involving a lot of effort.
• Gruelling (***): Tiring and lasting a long time.
• Strenuous (*): Needing a lot of physical effort.
• Bedraggled (***): Untidy, dirty, and wet (for people).
• Dishevelled (***): Untidy.
• Scruffy (***): Untidy (for people/places), and old/worn (for clothes).
• Astute (***): Clever at understanding people and situations.
• Crafty (***): Clever and good at using deception to achieve success.
• Shrewd (**): Clever, showing good judgment of other people and situations.
• Wily (*): Clever and experienced at deceiving people and not easily deceived (for people/behavior).
• Conventional (***): Ordinary and normal.
• Mainstream (***): Ordinary, conventional, neither strange nor extreme.
• Middle-of-the-road (***): Ordinary, not extreme; can be idea, beliefs, music, etc.
• Run-of-the-mill (*): Ordinary, nothing special

Adjectives III (Word Formation)

• Accessible: Easily reached, entered, obtained, or used; accessibility (n). Opposites: inaccessible, inaccessibility (n).
• Accurate: Precise/correct; accuracy (n). Opposites: inaccurate, inaccuracy (n).
• Apologetic: Expressing or showing that you are sorry for doing something.
• Arguable:
• Debatable.
• Argumentative: Quarrelsome; always ready to disagree.
• Coherent: Well-planned, clear and sensible; coherence (n). Opposites: incoherent, incoherence (n).
• Decisive: Able to make quick decisions in a difficult situation; decisiveness (n). Opposites: indecisive, indecision (n).
• Discreet: Careful in order to avoid embarrassing or offending sb; discretion (n). Opposites: indiscreet, indiscretion (n).
• Excessive: More or higher than is necessary or reasonable.
• Knowledgeable: Well-informed.
• Legible: Clear enough to read; legibility (n). Opposites: illegible, illegibility [(n)-not common].
• Logical: Reasonable/sensible; logic (n). Opposites: illogical.
• Loyal: Faithful; loyalty (n). Opposites: disloyal, disloyalty (n).
• Normal: Usual/ordinary; normality (n). Opposites: abnormal, abnormality (n).
• Obedient: Someone who does what they are told; obedience (n). Opposites: disobedient, disobedience (n).
• Official: Approved by sb in authority Opposites: unofficial.
• Orthodox: Accepted or used by most people; orthodoxy (n) Opposites: unorthodox, unorthodoxy (n).
• Plausible: Likely to be true, valid; plausibility (n) Opposites: implausible, implausibility (n).
• Polite: Having good manners, courteous; politeness (n). Opposites: impolite, impoliteness (n).
• Practical: Down-to-earth (for people); effective/likely to be successful; practicality (n). Opposites: impractical, impracticality (n).
• Precise: Exact; precision (n). Opposites: imprecision (n).
• Preferential treatment: to be treated better than other people.
• Replaceable: Disposable; Opposites: irreplaceable.
• Responsible: behaving sensibly and properly; responsibility (n). Opposites: Irresponsible and irresponsibility (n).
• Ripe: Fully-grown, ready to eat (fruit, grain); ripeness (n), ripen (v). Opposites: unripe, unripeness [(n)
• Scrupulous: Taking great care to do what is fair, honest or morally right; scruples (n) Opposites: unscrupulous.

Anger and Annoyance - Animals

• A blazing row: A very angry and emotional argument
• To blow your top: To lose your temper and become very angry
• To be cross: To be a little angry (often used when speaking to children)
• To be crotchety: Bad-tempered and easily made angry
• To drive sb up the wall: To annoy someone
• Furious: Very angry
• Galling: Something that is annoying because it seems unfair or wrong
• To get on sb's nerves: To annoy sb
• A heated argument: A bad argument in which people are very angry
• To hit the roof: To lose your temper and become very angry
• To be indignant: To be very angry because you think sth is wrong or unfair
• Infuriate: Make angry
• Irate: Very angry
• To irritate: To annoy
• To be livid: To be very angry (not used before a noun)
• To be in no mood to: To be angry and not want to
• An outburst: A sudden explosion of anger
• A quick temper: If you have a quick temper, you lose your temper quickly and very easily
• To be sick and tired of sth/sb: To annoyed and fed up with sth\sb
• To throw a tantrum: To start kicking, crying, and shouting (generally used for children)
• To be touchy: To be bad-tempered and easily made angry
• To be up in arms about sth: To be very angry and ready to protest (used to describe group action)
• The black sheep of the family: Sb considered to be a failure/an embarrassment by relatives
• To be as blind as a bat: (Informal): To have poor eyesight
• You can ... till the cows come home, but it won't: You can do something for a very long time, but it won't change anything
• You can ask ... till the cows come home, but I won't tell you
• A dark horse: Sb who people know very little about
• To be dogged by sth: Sth bad keeps causing you trouble and it will not go away
• For donkey's years: (Informal) For a very long time
• To duck: To avoid sth which is going to hit you by lowering your head
• It is like water off a duck's back for sb: Sth does not affect you because you are accustomed to it
• Fishy: Suspicious
• To hound sb: To persistently follow sb (used in connection with the press)
• The lion's share: The biggest part
• To rabbit on (about sth): To talk for a long time in a boring way
• Ratty: Bad-tempered/easily made angry
• To have a whale of a time: (Informal): To really enjoy yourself
• A wild goose chase: A search for sth that one is unlikely to find
• To worm your way out of sth: To avoid doing sth you do not want to do

4 ...and... Pair Phrases

• to arrive/turn up/leave in dribs and drabs: to arrive, etc. in small numbers/quantities and at irregular intervals
• bright and early: (to wake up/get up/leave) very early in the morning (has a positive connotation)
• by and large: generally
• to be few and far between: not to be very common/to be very difficult to find
• to grin and bear it: to accept an unpleasant situation without complaining (probably because there is no choice)
• ins and outs: the details of a complicated situation/problem/system/proposal
• to make a song and dance about: to complain too much about sth, in a way that seems unnecessary
• odds and ends: small unimportant objects
• once and for all: definitely and finally so that you end all doubt and uncertainty
• one's own flesh and blood: a relative
• an out-and-out lie: - a complete lie (used in reply to sb who has accused you of sth)
• to be part and parcel of... a basic and fundamental part of life/a job/a problem
• peace and quiet: calm and tranquillity
• pride and joy: - something/someone that a person is very proud of and which/who is very important to them.
• prim and proper: very conservative and easily offended (used to describe people)
• pushing and shoving: pushing (used with reference to crowded places)
• safe and sound: safe and unharmed (used when sb has not been harmed despite being in a potentially dangerous situation)
• spick and span: very clean
• touch and go: doubtful (used with reference to important or life-threatening situations)
• up and coming: someone who shows a lot of promise and will probably be very successful in the future
• to have ups and downs: to have good times and bad times
• wear and tear: damage caused to furniture/clothes/equipment, by daily use
• well and truly: completely (often used with lost and beaten)
• to win fair and square: to win fairly (often used when you have been accused of cheating)

Posture and Movement

• To crouch: Sit with legs bent under you, close to the ground, leaning forward.
• To curl up: Move into a position where your body forms a rounded shape.
• To duck: Quickly lower your head to avoid being hit or to avoid being seen.
• To fidget: Constantly move your hands or feet.
• To flinch: Make a sudden small movement because something has hurt you or made you jump.
• To frown: Lower your eyebrows because you are angry or do not understand.
• To kneel: Bend your legs so your knees touch the ground.
• To nod: Move your head up and down to show agreement.
• To nudge: Gently push someone with your elbow to attract their attention.
• To shiver: Your body shakes because you are cold.
• To shudder: Your whole body shakes briefly because you have seen, heard, or tasted something unpleasant.
• To tremble: Your body or part of your body shakes because you are frightened or very nervous.
• Bloodcurdling (scream): Very frightening.
• Eye-catching: So attractive or unusual that you can't help noticing it.
• First-hand: Having personal experience of something.
• Hair-raising: Very frightening; used to describe experiences and journeys.
• Head-on: Describes a collision where the front of two vehicles collide.
• Light-hearted: Funny and not very serious.
• Mouth-watering: Food that looks and/or smells very good.
• Nail-biting: Very exciting and dramatic because the outcome is uncertain.
• Narrow-minded: Not accepting and positively disliking anything new, different, or radical.
  • Broad-minded is the opposite.
• Well thumbed: A book or magazine that has been read so much that the edges and corners of the pages are dirty and in poor condition.

Verb-Noun Combination

• Not to bat an eyelid: Not to show any visible sign of surprise.
• To clear your throat: To cough to speak more clearly.
• To clench your fist: To curl your fingers up very tightly, when you are angry.
• To cross your legs: While sitting, to put one leg on top of the other
• To flex your muscles: To strike a pose and show muscles
• To fold your arm: To bring your arms together and link them
• To grit your teeth: To press your teeth tightly together, often because you are angry or distressed; to clench your teeth"

Body Idioms

• A pain in the neck: A very annoying person, thing, or task.
• At the foot of: At the bottom of (a hill, mountain, the stairs, a tree, your bed, etc.).
• To cost an arm and a leg: To be very expensive.
• To cry your eyes out: To cry a lot.
• To face a team: To play against another team.
• To fall head over heels in love (with sb): To fall madly and completely in
• To foot the bill: To pay the bill, especially when someone else was expected to pay.
• To get cold feet: To suddenly feel not brave enough to do something important.
• To get sth off your chest: To tell someone something that has been worrying you.
• To get up sb's nose: To annoy someone.
• To give sb a hand (with sth): To help someone do something.
• To be glad to see the back of sb/sth: To be happy when someone leaves or something is finished.
• To have sth on the brain: To be obsessed by something and think about it all the time.
• To have your eye on sth: To have seen something that you want to buy/have.
• To have/give sb a head start: To have/give someone an advantage over others.
• To head home: To leave in order to go home.
• I can't put my finger on: To know something is wrong, but be unable to say exactly what.
• I couldn't keep a straight face: I couldn't stop laughing.
• I don't know off-hand: (Informal): I can't tell/answer until I have checked first.
• I'd give my right arm to: I would really like to.
• In the eyes of the law: Legally, according to the laws of the land.
• To keep an eye on sth/sb: To look after sth/sb.
• To know somewhere like the back of your hand: To know a particular place very well (not used for people).
• To learn to stand on one's own two feet: To learn not to depend on others.
• To make/lose money hand over fist: To rapidly make or lose large sums of money.
• Off the top of one's head: Information given immediately without full knowledge of the facts.
• Sth is on its last legs: Something is in very bad condition and will soon stop working.
• To pull sb's leg: To play a joke on someone and make them believe something that is not true.
• To put your foot down: To become strict and tell someone that they must/can't do something.
• To set eyes on sb: To see sb, often for the first time.
• To set your heart on sth: To really want sth.

Chance and Probability

• to be bound to happen: certain to happen because it always happens
• to be certain to happen: sth will very probably happen
• to be in with a chance of+ing form: there is a good possibility that
• to be unlikely to/it is unlikely that: one/sth probably won't
• to blow your chances: to ruin your chances (of getting/achieving sth)
• to grab an opportunity/chance (with both hands): to quickly accept a good opportunity, especially because you think you will not get that opportunity again
• (sth will), in all probability, (happen): sth will very probably happen
• it is doubtful whether/that sth will happen: sth probably won't happen
• It was purely by chance that...: it was complete chance that sth happened
• to jump at the chance/opportunity: to quickly accept a good opportunity
• (to do sth) on the off-chance: do sth hoping it will succeed although you think it is unlikely
• to pass up a chance/opportunity: to say no to a good opportunity (a good job offer, etc)
• (not) to stand a chance: to have no possibility (of achieving/getting sth)
• the chances are that sth will happen: sth will probably happen
• the chances of sth happening are very remote: there is very little possibility that sth will happen
• the odds are against sth happening: sth probably won't happen
• there's a slim/remote/little chance that sth will/could happen: there is not much possibility of sth happening

Choosing and Decisions & Clothes I

• To be in a quandary: Unable to decide what to do because of a difficult situation.
• To be in two minds about sth/whether to do sth: Can't decide whether or not to do sth.
• To be shortlisted: Chosen from a large group for a job, joining a smaller group for interviews.
• To be spoilt for choice: To have many similar things to choose from.
• To be torn between sth and sth else: To find two things attractive and cannot decide between them.
• Hand-picked: Especially chosen for a particular job.
• To have a change of heart: To change the way you feel about sth/sb.
• To have no alternative but to...: Indicates that sth is the only possible choice often used in formal threats.
• To opt for/to do sth: (Formal) to choose to do sth.
• To reach/come to/arrive at a decision:* To decide after careful consideration (generally used for juries, committees, boards of directors, governments, etc.)
• To single (sth\sb) out: To choose and pay special attention to sth/sb from group of similar things/people, usually in order to praise or criticize them.
• To sit on the fence: Not to commit oneself in an argument; to neither agree nor disagree Clothes Terminology
• Baggy: very loose*
• Creased/crumpled: unironed*
• Faded: has lost its original color or brightness*
• Fancy: special and unusual with a lot of decoration*
• Fetching: attractive can be used to describe a person or an article of clothing*
• Flared: wide at the bottom*
• Flat: with very low or not heels*
• Garish: very colourful in a way that is not in good taste*
• Grubby: dirty*
• Loud: very colourful in a way that one might find unpleasant*
• Moth eaten: full of holes*
• Patched: with pieces of material sown on to cover holes*
• Platform: platform shoes have thick high heels and elevated soles*
• Shabby: old and in bad condition*
• Sturdy: strong*
• Synthetic: made from artificial substances or material*
• Tailored: designed to fit close to the body*
• Worn-out: old and ready to be thrown away*