The Ultimate 900+ List of Adjectives: From A to Z

Adjectives: what are they, and why do they matter? And how can you help children to understand this part of speech?

Adjectives help us to describe a person, place, or thing in a way that brings them to life. Whether you’re a parent trying to help with your child’s elementary homework or you’re looking to enhance your vocabulary for your own writing, it’s important to understand adjectives.

To help on this journey, I’ve created a list including over 900 adjective examples and five fun ways children can learn about this aspect of speech. Keep reading!

In This Article

What Are Adjectives?
Adjectives A to Z
Descriptive Adjectives
Teaching Kids Adjectives
Adjectives Are Fun

What Are Adjectives?

So, what is an adjective?

Adjectives are describing words. As a part of speech, adjectives give more details about the noun (a person, place, or thing).

For example, we might describe a house as large. This allows us to visualize and comprehend the features of the house.

Adjectives can describe how something looks, smells, acts, or even how many items there are. Below is a sentence with the adjectives in bold.

I ran to the busy store, hoping to find some bright flowers, six oranges, and a pink swimsuit that was just the right size.

Adjectives From A to Z

It can help to see a list of adjectives. Whether you’re using this list to learn more about grammar or you’d like some inspiration for your own writing, we have many fun adjectives starting with each letter of the alphabet.

Adjectives That Start With the Letter A

Able
Absolute
Acceptable
Aching
Adorable
Adventurous
Aesthetic
Aging
Airy
Alarming
Alternative
Ambient
Angry
Animalistic
Anticlimactic
Apologetic
Appropriate
Argumentative
Armed
Articulate
Artificial
Assertive
Atomic
Attached
Audible
Authoritative
Automatic
Average
Aware
Awesome

Adjectives That Start With the Letter B

Backward
Bad
Baked
Bearded
Beautiful
Beefy
Bent
Best
Biracial
Bitter
Black
Blue
Booksy
Botanical
Bountiful
Bossy
Boxy
Braided
Brainy
Brazen
Broken
Breathless
Breezy
Bridal
Brick
Broad
Brown
Buff
Bumpy
Burnt

Adjectives That Start With the Letter C

Cagey
Calculated
Calorific
Canadian
Candid
Carsick
Catastrophic
Cathartic
Cavernous
Central
Ceremonial
Certified
Chained
Cheap
Choppy
Charismatic
Circular
Circumstantial
Civil
Closed
Cloudy
Comical
Common
Compliant
Concise
Cordial
Cotton
Crazy
Creamy
Curly

Adjectives That Start With the Letter D

Daft
Damaged
Damp
Dandy
Dangerous
Dead
Decent
Decorative
Deep
Defective
Defensive
Delayed
Delicate
Dependent
Depressed
Destructive
Different
Difficult
Digital
Direct
Discolored
Doe-eyed
Domed
Double-edged
Doughy
Drafty
Drowsy
Dry
Dumb
Dusty

Adjectives That Start With the Letter E

Eager
Earthy
Echoey
Edgy
Educated
Effective
Efflorescent
Eighteen
Elusive
Emergency
Emotional
Empathetic
Endangered
Energetic
English
Engrossed
Enormous
Entertaining
Enthusiastic
Entitled
Escapist
Eternal
Ethical
European
Even
Eventful
Exalted
Executive
Exempt
Expressive

Adjectives That Start With the Letter F

Facial
Fair
Faithful
False
Famous
Far
Fashionable
Fearful
Feminine
Feverish
Fictional
Fidgety
Fierce
Fifth
Filmy
Final
Financial
Flat
Fleshy
Flexible
Flowery
Foam
Foreign
Forgetful
Fragrant
Free
Fresh
Friendly
Futuristic
Fuzzy

Adjectives That Start With the Letter G

Garbage
Gassy
Gaunt
Geeky
Genetic
Gentle
Germy
Ghostly
Giant
Gigantic
Ginger
Glad
Glamorous
Glassy
Global
Glorious
Godly
Golden
Good
Gory
Graceful
Grammatical
Grand
Grainy
Grassy
Grave
Great
Grounded
Gunky
Gross

Adjectives That Start With the Letter H

Habitual
Hairy
Half-cooked
Handmade
Handpicked
Handy
Happy
Hard
Harmonic
Harmful
Hazardous
Headachy
Healthy
Hearty
Helpful
Hereditary
Hesitant
High
Hollow
Holy
Homebound
Hopeful
Horrific
Hostile
Hot
Hulky
Humane
Hydraulic
Hyper
Hypervigilant

Adjectives That Start With the Letter I

Icy
Ideal
Idiotic
Idle
Idyllic
Ill
Illustrated
Immense
Immortal
Immune
Imperfect
Important
Impressive
Inaccessible
Inbound
Inclusive
Incredible
Industrial
Infamous
Infectious
Influential
Initial
Inky
Innocent
Intoxicating
Invisible
Irish
Irritable
Isolated
Itchy

Adjectives That Start With the Letter J

Jammed
Jammy
Janitorial
Japanese
Jarring
Jaundiced
Jaw-dropping
Jealous
Jet-black
Jiggly
Jingling
Jittery
Jocose
Joint
Jolly
Jolting
Journalistic
Jovial
Jowly
Joyful
Joyless
Jubilant
Judgey
Judicial
Jumpy
Junior
Junky
Just
Justified
Juvenile

Adjectives That Start With the Letter K

Keen
Kept
Kenyan
Keyed
Keynote
Khaki
Kicked
Kiddie
Killer
Kin
Kind
Kindhearted
Kindred
Kinetic
King-sized
Kissable
Kissy
Klutz
Knackered
Knavish
Knee-deep
Knitted
Knobbly
Knocked
Knowledgeable
Known
Knubby
Kooky
Korean
Kyphotic

Adjectives That Start With the Letter L

Laborious
Lacy
Ladylike
Laid-back
Last
Lead
Leafy
Leaky
Left
Legitimate
Lemony
Leveled
Liberal
Licensed
Life-threatening
Light
Likely
Linear
Lined
Literal
Lively
Logical
Lonely
Long
Loopy
Loose
Low
Loyal
Luminous
Lush

Adjectives That Start With the Letter M

Machine-like
Mad
Magnetic
Mainstream
Major
Manic
Man-made
Marked
Marshy
Masculine
Matted
Mean
Measly
Meaty
Medicinal
Melodic
Merry
Messy
Micro
Middle
Milky
Mini
Minor
Mock
Moist
Monetary
Mossy
Motherly
Muddled
Muddy

Adjectives That Start With the Letter N

Nailed-on
Naive
Naked
Narcissistic
Narrow
Nasal
National
Natural
Naughty
Nautical
Near
Neat
Necessary
Needed
Neglectful
Neighborly
Neon
Nerdy
Neutral
New
Nice
Nine
Noble
Noisy
None
Noteworthy
Nuclear
Numbered
Nutritional
Nutty

Adjectives That Start With the Letter O

Objective
Obedient
Oblique
Obedient
Obsolete
Obstructive
Occasional
Occupied
Odd
Off
Offensive
Official
Oily
Old
Olive
Omniscient
One
Online
Onshore
Opaque
Open
Opportunistic
Opposite
Optical
Opulent
Orange
Ordinary
Orthodox
Outcast
Oval

Adjectives That Start With the Letter P

Packed
Pale
Palmy
Panicked
Panoramic
Parallel
Paranoid
Parental
Partial
Particular
Patchy
Peaceful
Peculiar
Peppery
Perfect
Performative
Pesky
Phenomenal
Photogenic
Physical
Picky
Playful
Poetic
Pointy
Popular
Prepared
Pristine
Private
Prompt
Pure

Adjectives That Start With the Letter Q

Quackish
Quadrangular
Quadratic
Quadruple
Quaggy
Quaint
Quaky
Qualified
Quality
Quarrelsome
Quaternary
Queasy
Queen-like
Queenly
Queer
Quenched
Querulous
Questionable
Quick
Quick-tempered
Quick-witted
Quiescent
Quiet
Quilted
Quintessential
Quirky
Quizzical
Quixotic
Quotable
Quotidian

Adjectives That Start With the Letter R

Racist
Radiant
Radical
Rainy
Rampant
Random
Rapid
Rational
Ratty
Real
Red
Refreshing
Regretful
Regular
Relatable
Reprehensible
Reserved
Revolting
Rhythmic
Rich
Right
Rigid
Ripe
Romantic
Rosy
Round
Ruby
Rumbly
Rushed
Ruthless

Adjectives That Start With the Letter S

Sacred
Sad
Safe
Salty
Sandy
Sanitary
Satin
Scarred
Scrappy
Scrumptious
Seasonal
Second
Senior
Sheepish
Shielded
Sideways
Silver
Slanted
Slippery
Snowy
Solitary
Soothing
Sparse
Special
Spiritual
Squashed
Stable
Still
Stunned
Substantial

Adjectives That Start With the Letter T

Tactical
Tailor-made
Tall
Taxing
Telescopic
Tempting
Tender
Tense
Testing
Textured
Thick
Third
Ticklish
Tight
Tinted
Top
Touching
Toxic
Traditional
Tragic
Transformative
Transmitted
Trashy
Treacherous
Tricksy
Tropical
Tumultuous
Turkish
Two
Typical

Adjectives That Start With the Letter U

Ultra
Ultraviolet
Uber
Ugly
Ultimate
Unappealing
Unauthorized
Uncertain
Uncivil
Unconditional
Underlined
Underpaid
Underused
Unfortunate
Unfriendly
Unemployed
Unified
United
Universal
Unoriginal
Unmanageable
Unwilling
Uproarious
Upside-down
Unwell
Upper
Urban
User-friendly
Utopian
Uttermost

Adjectives That Start With the Letter V

Vacant
Vacuous
Vain
Valorous
Vanilla
Variable
Varicose
Vegetative
Venetian
Vengeful
Venomous
Verbal
Versatile
Vertical
Vicious
Victorious
Vigilant
Vigorous
Vile
Villous
Vincible
Vindictive
Vined
Vinegary
Vinyl
Violent
Violet
Virtual
Virtuous
Visionary

Adjectives That Start With the Letter W

Wacky
Waist-deep
Walkable
Walled
Warm
Warped
Washable
Wasted
Watchful
Watery
Wavy
Waxen
Weak
Wearable
Weathered
Wedged
Weepy
Weighted
Well
Wet
Whimsical
Whipped
Whirly
White
Whizzy
Wide
Wild
Wintery
Wishful
Witchy

Adjectives That Start With the Letter X

Xanthodontous
Xanthous
Xenial
Xenodochial
Xenogenetic
Xenolithic
Xenophobic
Xenotropic
Xeric
Xerographic
Xerothermic
Xiphoid
Xyloid
Xylophonic
Xylotomous

Adjectives That Start With the Letter Y

Yankee
Yappy
Yare
Yawnful
Yearling
Yearlong
Yearly
Yearnful
Yeasty
Yellow
Yemenite
Yeomanly
Yieldable
Yobbish
Yogic
Yoked
Yon
Young
Youthful
Yucky
Yuletide
Yummy

Adjectives That Start With the Letter Z

Zaftig
Zany
Zappy
Zealous
Zen
Zenithal
Zephyrous
Zero
Zestful
Zigzag
Zinciferous
Zingy
Zionist
Zipless
Zippered
Zoetic
Zodiacal
Zoic
Zombielike
Zonal
Zonked
Zoogenic
Zoological
Zoomy
Zooty
Zygomatic
Zymoid
Zymolytic

Descriptive Adjectives

I’ll break down various adjectives into lists to help you find the right word to use. Whether you’re trying to describe how someone looks, or personality traits, or you’re looking for some positive adjectives, here are 165 words to add to your vocabulary!

To Describe a Person’s Appearance

Adjectives help describe how someone looks. When discussing the color of someone’s hair, body type, or other descriptors, adjectives help paint an accurate picture of someone.

You can also use positive or negative describing words that can sway a reader’s opinion, which is helpful when writing fiction! Here are 33 adjectives to describe a person’s appearance, whether you’re looking for adjectives starting with ‘g’, adjectives starting with ‘o’, or even ‘y’.

Athletic
Attractive
Big (to describe eyes)
Blonde
Bony
Brunette
Bushy (to describe hair or eyebrows)
Crooked (to describe nose)
Cute
Elderly
Exquisite
Frail
Frizzy (to describe hair or eyebrows)
Good-looking
Green (to describe eyes)
Handsome
Lanky
Long (to describe hair or eyebrows)
Lovely
Masculine
Plain
Pursed (to describe lips)
Sleek (to describe hair or eyebrows)
Small (to describe any feature)
Sparkling (to describe eyes)
Stylish
Squat
Tall
Tiny
Tousled
Ugly
White (to describe hair or eyebrows)
Young

To Describe Size

While big and small are great words, you can describe the size of something in many ways. Using exaggerated adjectives like tiny or ginormous can help convey just how small or large something is. We’ve got 33 great adjectives for describing size.

Baby
Beefy
Big
Broad
Colossal
Cubby
Endless
Epic
Fat
Gigantic
Grand
Great
Heavy
Immeasurable
Large
Life-size
Little
Measly
Microscopic
Mighty
Mini
Narrow
Petite
Puny
Scrawny
Short
Stocky
Thin
Tiny
Titanic
Undersized
Wee
Wide

To Describe Personality Traits

Having a bank of vocabulary words to describe someone’s personality is important. Not only is this helpful in fictional writing, but trust me — this will come in handy for birthday cards and lovely messages! Here are 33 words you can use to describe someone, whether they’re fictional or not.

Active
Adventurous
Bold
Bright
Courageous
Crafty
Demanding
Direct
Encouraging
Entrepreneurial
Focused
Goal-orientated
Honest
Introverted
Joyful
Kind
Loyal
Motivated
Neat
Outgoing
Passionate
Patient
Quiet
Reflective
Selfish
Shy
Tactful
Thoughtful
Unreliable
Vivacious
Weak
Witty
Zen

To Describe Emotions and Feelings

Kids struggle to describe their feelings. So why not teach them some new words? If they have more words in the bank, they can better describe how they feel to their parents, teachers, and friends.

Here are 33 useful words to describe emotions and feelings.

Amazed
Blissful
Cheerful
Chilly
Composed
Depressed
Dreadful
Ecstatic
Festive
Grouchy
Harmonious
Indifferent
Joyful
Jumpy
Knowledgeable
Lonely
Miserable
Nervous
Optimistic
Panicked
Puzzled
Quizzical
Reserved
Satisfied
Settled
Terrible
Tired
Uneasy
Volcanic
Weak
Xenial
Yawnful
Zen

Positive Descriptive Adjectives for Kids

Do you feel your kids are always spouting off negative adjectives? Maybe to describe themselves or others?

Here are 33 positive descriptive words that you can share with your kids. Whether they’re using these words to describe their home, how they feel, or how they view themselves, I think you’ll be excited to add them to their vocabulary.

Admirable
Amusing
Bright
Content
Creative
Dynamic
Excellent
Friendly
Funny
Generous
Humorous
Hygienic
Imaginative
Incredible
Jolly
Kindred
Likable
Lovely
Mature
Nice
Observant
Perfect
Polite
Quick-thinking
Respectful
Super
Thoughtful
Upbeat
Vibrant
Wondrous
Xenodochial
Yummy
Zingy

Tips on How To Teach Kids Adjectives

Teaching adjectives can be challenging. Some kids grasp the concept right away, while others might struggle to differentiate between an adjective and other parts of speech.

We have five tips for teaching adjectives to kids using fun and educational methods that should stick! These are great for preschoolers or seniors in high school — all students can benefit.

1. Use Everyday Examples

When wandering around with your child, point out different places, people, and things. Work on describing these “nouns” together using adjectives.

Over time, your child will start to understand an adjective and its role in speech. For instance, you can see a dog and describe it as cute or fuzzy. You can spot a businessman eating lunch and describe him as hungry or overworked.

Make sure you incorporate different types of adjectives when doing this, such as numbers and colors. We often forget that these count as adjectives, too!

You can also play around with how you phrase something. Instead of saying “the cold lemonade”, show your child that you can also say “the lemonade is cold”.

Once you get into the swing of things, you can amplify your adjective use. Instead of saying cold, try words like freezing, frigid, and chilly. Finding synonyms for adjectives will help build a child’s vocabulary.

This is an excellent game for younger kids, such as those in kindergarten or first grade, since it doesn’t involve spelling.

2. Introduce Yourself

This is a great game for classrooms! Everybody takes a few minutes to think of three words they would use to describe themselves — these are adjectives.

You could also make it a little more fun by asking everyone to choose one word for each letter of their name. For instance, if their name is “Beth”, they have to think of an adjective starting with “B”, “E”, “T”, and “H”.

Once everyone has chosen their adjectives, go around the class and listen to all the different words. This is a great way to test the children’s understanding of adjectives, and teachers/parents have a chance to correct any misunderstandings.

While the children listen to each other, they will also hear some new words to add to their vocabulary. Plus, working together like this repetitively is a fantastic way to help children who don’t understand the concept of adjectives yet.

3. Play Mad Libs

This was one of my favorite word games as a child. On each page is a story with missing words. At the top of the page is an empty list that you have to fill in.

There are various prompts, including “nouns”, “colors”, and of course, “adjectives”. Kids can play this alone, but it’s great fun with two or three players.

Once you’ve filled in the list, read the story, filling in the gaps with the words chosen above. This will lead to absolutely hilarious sentences such as: “You will need to find space troublesome enough so that you can comfortably lie down.” Another example is: “Then rub some glasses on the inside of your nose to help keep it murderous.”

Because this game is so fun, it will motivate kids to understand various parts of speech. Otherwise, they can’t play it properly! This is how I helped teach all my siblings about adjectives, nouns, verbs, and adverbs.

If you like this, there are tons of different Mad Libs available, including Goofy Mad Libs and Summer Fun Mad Libs.

4. Read, Read, and Keep Reading

The more you expose a child to words and reading, the more they will understand speech and grammar. Whether your child is three or 33, reading can help them to understand adjectives.

There are so many amazing books out there. Authors love using describing words to help readers visualize the characters, places, buildings, and emotions. You might meet a zany astronaut or a brown-eyed toddler.

You’ll come across majestic castles with tall turrets or perhaps an old library with hundreds of wonderful books.

You can use thin highlighter tape to get your child to highlight the adjectives they come across. Highlighter tape peels off easily, so it works great for school and library books. Ask your child what adjectives they’ve found so you can be sure they’re on track for understanding the grammar.

5. Adjective Match

Adjective Match is another fun game that teaches children adjectives. On a bunch of notecards, write down a different adjective on each. Shuffle the cards up.

Separately, get some pictures online from your photo albums, magazines, or brochures.

Let each player choose an image. Then deal four cards to each player. If the player can use all four of their adjectives to describe the image they chose, then they win that round.

For instance, if they picked up a picture of a messy office, and their adjectives were “dark”, “crowded”, “tidy”, and “yummy”, then they would have to discard “dark”, “tidy”, and yummy”. They would then pick up three new cards. Then it’s the next player’s turn.

The game continues until somebody has four adjectives that describe their image. Not only does this game teach reading skills, but it also reinforces what an adjective is and what the various words mean. Associating the words with a visual picture can help them understand how descriptive words can be.

Adjectives Are Fun

I’m a bit of a grammar freak, so I might be slightly biased, but I think adjectives are great. Where would we be without them? Reading and writing would be boring, and it would be impossible to explain the difference between one thing and another.

There are so many ways to teach adjectives to children. I recommend using fun games like Adjective Match or Mad Libs books.

Learning adjectives will immensely help with reading comprehension and writing skills. Just make sure your child knows the difference between positive and negative adjectives. The last thing you need is for them to go around insulting people with their new favorite adjective!

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