This document provides tips for writing a descriptive essay about a person by outlining the key elements that should be included. The essay should have an introduction providing general information about the person, a main body describing their physical appearance, personal qualities, and hobbies or interests using paragraphs for each topic, and a conclusion with comments and feelings about the person. Linking words and phrases are recommended to join sentences and ideas, and examples of complimentary and uncomplimentary adjectives are provided for descriptive language. Exercises are included to have the reader practice writing descriptive essays and labeling paragraphs.

1. T IPS FO R W R IT IN G -FIR ST TH EM E “ D ESC R IB IN G PEO PLE”
A d esc r ipt iv e essa y a b o u t a per so n sh o u l d c o n sist o f:
A. An introduction in which you give general information about the person, saying
when, where, how you first met him/her; in case the person is a relative you must
say the grade.(f.e. I’m going to write/to talk about my mother.........)
B. A main body in which you describe their physical appearance, personal qualities and
hobbies/interest. You start a new paragraph for each topic. When you describe
someone’s physical appearance you start with the general features(i.e. height, build,
age) and move on to the more specific ones, such as hair, eyes, nose, etc. You can
also add a description of the clothes the person likes to wear or is wearing.

2. E.g. Laura is a tall, slim woman in her early twenties. She has got long, wavy, red
hair, beautiful, big green eyes and freckles. She usually wears smart, expensive
clothes.
When you describe someone’s personal qualities you should support your
description with examples and/or justifications.
E.g. Wayne is very shy. Fo example, he finds it difficult to make new friends.
You can also describe someone’s personality through their mannerism by:
1 Referring to the way they speak-
E.g. He speaks in a soft voice as if he were whispering.
2 Describing the gesture they use.
e.g. She is always moving her hands when she speaks.
3 Mentioning particular habits .
e.g.Jason always bites his nails when he is nervous.
C. A conclusion in which you write your comments and/or feelings about the person.
N o t e: When you mention someone’s negative qualities you should use mild language (
seems to, can be rather, etc).
e.g. Instead of saying “Paul is lazy” it is better to say” Paul can be rather lazy at
times”
LIN K IN G W O R D S AN D PH R ASES.
To make your piece of writing more interesting , you must use a variety or linking
words and phrases to join sent or ideas together.
To join description of similar personal qualities you can use:
“in addition, also, too, as well, besides that, and, moreover, etc.
e.g.She is cheerful and is always smiling. Moreover, she always behaves politely.
To join descriptions of contrasting qualities you can use:
“but”, “on the other hand”,” however”, “nevertheless”, etc.
e.g. He is clever and always well at school. However, he can be bossy at times.
Show time: when, whenever, before, while, as soon as, etc.
List points or show sequence: first(ly), to start with, next, finally,
Add more points: Furthermore, moreover, in addition, and, also, what is more, etc.
Give examples: for instance, for example, to conclude, to sum up,
Show contrast: however, on the other hand, despite, though, etc.
Introducing a conclusion: all in all, to conclude, to sum up, etc.
EXERCISES
1. USE THE TIPS ABOVE TO WRITE AN ESSAY ABOUT YOUR BEST FRIEND.
2. COMPLETE THE CHART BY ADDING AS MANY WORDS AS YOU CAN.

3. TIPS FOR WRITING (PART TWO)
This unit deals with “the good”,”the bad” and “the ugly”, complimentary and
uncomplimentary words, from the unbelievably beautiful to the indescribably horrible.
EXERCISE 1-Read the following letter, underline the adjerctives andn then add them into your
chart.
WHAT SHOULD I DO?
Dear and helpful Hatti:
I am writing to you about my sister and all the problems I have.
She has exquisite features, a classic profile, a scintillating smile, a stunning figure, an attractive
personality and a wonderful sense of humour.
I have got very plain face, very ordinary feature (according to my friend), a rather ugly smile, a
nondescript figure,a shallow and unappealing character, and a coarse sense of humour.
WHAT SHOULD I DO?
She is sparkling conversationalist, a fabulous dancer, a graceful mover, super-efficient at her job, a
talented sportswoman and a gifted musician.
I am a very dull conversationalist, a clumsy dancer, an awkward mover, an incompetent fool in the
office, useless at sport and hopeless at all musical instruments.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE ME?
She is always well-dressed, smart, elegant, extremely ladylike, very refined, exceptionally well-
mannered and invariably polite to everyone.
On the other hand, I always look shabby and scruffy , I tend to be rough, common, vulgar and rude.
WHAT CAN I DO ABOUT IT?
She is very cultured, well-educated, well-read.
I was always backward at school, semi-literate and now very ignorant.
PLEASE HELP ME!!
She is bright, intelligent, witty and clever.
I am slow, dim, “daft” my mother says- “thick” says my father.
I look forward to hearing from you
“Cinderella”
ACTIVITY-1- NOW YOU WRITE A SIMILAR LETTER ASKING FOR ADVICE.
ACTIVITY 2-Read the description and put the paragraph into the correct order.
In her spare time Ruth liked to read. She loved detective stories and crime novels, and she used to
bring me many of her favourite books to read. I remember she also spoke about the karate lessons she
went to twice a week.

4. I first met Ruth when I was in hospital in Madrid about four years ago. I was there because I had a
sight problem, and Ruth was the patient in the next bed. She not only kept me company the whole I
was in hospital, bit also visited me for many weeks after she recovered from her illness.
When I returned to Vigo, we kept in touch by letter and e-mail. Then about a year ago, Ruth got a new
job and moved to Australia. Sadly we have lost touch with each other, but I will never forget her
kindness and h
Ruth had a quiet but very friendlñy nature. She was generous as well as kind-hearted. Whenever she
visited me she always brought flowers and chocolates. She talked in a low voice because she was
rather shy. She also blushes very easily, although she had a great sense of humour.
Ruth was really pretty. She was tall, fairly slim and in her mid-twenties . She had a beautiful , oval
face, with huge, slanted, green eyes and long, straight, ginger hair.
She liked to dress casually in bright, colourful clothes which matched her sunny personality.
ACTIVITY-3-READ THE TEXT AND LABEL THE PARAGRAPHS WITH THE HEADING BELOW:
 Final comments and feelings
 Personal qualities
 Reasons I admire her
 Person’s name and reason I have chosen her.
The person I admire most from the twentieth century is Mother Teresa. I regard her as one of the
kindest and most caring people the world has ever known.
Mother Teresa was a selfless person. She devoted al of l her time to others and never put her own
needs first. She was also very courageous and never thought about the risks she was taking when
looking after people who were sick or dying.
What I admire most about Mother Teresa are her achievements. Her entire life was devoted to charity
work. For example, in 1,952 she opened a centre in Calcutta for the terminally ill, where patients
could be cared for and die with dignity. She also won many awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize in
1,979. She donated the money from her awards to fund other centres. Even though Mother Teresa is
no longer with us, these centres still operate, offering help to those in need.
I admire Mother Teresa not only because she was a generous and kind-hearted person, but also
because her accomplishments have influenced people all over the world. It is hardly surprising that
since her death in 1,997 she has been regarded as a true saint.
ACTIVITY-4-CHOOSE A PERSON YOU ADMIRE AND WRITE ABOUT HIM OR HER FOLLOWINGH THE WRITING
ABOVE.