{"id":182213,"date":"2017-09-26T01:14:06","date_gmt":"2017-09-26T05:14:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/chinese-adjectives-to-describe-a-person\/"},"modified":"2025-02-26T00:22:57","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T05:22:57","slug":"chinese-adjectives-to-describe-a-person","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/chinese\/chinese-adjectives-to-describe-a-person\/","title":{"rendered":"28 Must-know Chinese Adjectives to Describe a Person"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every language has its own extensive list of vocabulary<\/a> for describing someone, both in terms of personality and appearance. Learn some of these key terms, and you can greet your Chinese host family with a compliment<\/a> or flatter a hotel hostess by saying how beautiful she looks today.<\/p>\n

Here’s a list of Chinese adjectives to describe a person\u2014positive and negative.<\/p>\n

(Note: this post uses traditional Chinese characters.)<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Common Terms for Describing a Person’s Personality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Chinese<\/th>Pinyin<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\u8070\u660e <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>c\u014dng m\u00edng<\/i><\/td>Smart<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u6177\u6168 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>k\u0101ng k\u01cei<\/i><\/td>Generous<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4e50\u89c2 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>l\u00e8 gu\u0101n<\/i><\/td>Optimistic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u81ea\u4fe1 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>z\u00ec x\u00ecn<\/i><\/td>Self-confident<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u803f\u76f4 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>g\u011bng zh\u00ed<\/i><\/td>Honest and just<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5fe0\u8bda <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>zh\u014dng ch\u00e9ng<\/i><\/td>Loyal<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u8e0f\u5b9e <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>t\u00e0 sh\u00ed<\/i><\/td>Down-to-earth<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u968f\u548c <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>su\u00ed h\u00e9<\/i><\/td>Easy-going, laid-back<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u535a\u5b66 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>b\u00f3 xu\u00e9<\/i><\/td>Learned and educated<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u7b28 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>b\u00e8n<\/i><\/td>Stupid<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u865a\u4f2a <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>x\u016b w\u011bi<\/i><\/td>Fake, hypocritical<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u61d2\u60f0 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>l\u01cen du\u00f2<\/i><\/td>Lazy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u62a0\u95e8 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>k\u014du m\u00e9n<\/i><\/td>Cheap, stingy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u65e0\u77e5 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>w\u00fa zh\u012b<\/i><\/td>Ignorant<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5b64\u50fb <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>g\u016b p\u00ec<\/i><\/td>Antisocial<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u611a\u7b28 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>y\u00fa b\u00e8n<\/i><\/td>Clumsy, foolish<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u81ea\u5351 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>z\u00ec b\u0113i<\/i><\/td>Self-abasing, self-loathing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u72ed\u9698 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>xi\u00e1 \u00e0i<\/i><\/td>Narrow-minded<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

Keep in mind that you can also describe someone negatively by simply placing \u4e0d (b\u00f9) before any of the positive terms listed above.<\/p>\n

For example, you can say \u4ed6\u4e0d\u8070\u660e<\/strong> (t\u0101 b\u00f9 c\u014dng m\u00edng)<\/em> to say “he is not smart,” which is essentially the same as \u4ed6\u5f88\u7b28<\/strong> (t\u0101 h\u011bn b\u00e8n)<\/em> \u2014 “he is stupid.”<\/p>\n

Note that when using \u4e0d, \u5f88 isn’t used.<\/strong> We’ll discuss \u5f88 more in-depth later.<\/p>\n

Common Terms for Describing a Person’s Appearance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Chinese<\/th>Pinyin<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\u6f02\u4eae <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>pi\u00e0o liang<\/i><\/td>Pretty, beautiful (for describing a female)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5e05 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>shu\u00e0i<\/i><\/td>Handsome (for describing a male)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u597d\u770b <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>h\u01ceo k\u00e0n<\/i><\/td>Good-looking<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u53ef\u7231 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>k\u011b \u00e0i<\/i><\/td>Cute<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u7626 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>sh\u00f2u<\/i><\/td>Skinny<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u80d6 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>p\u00e0ng<\/i><\/td>Fat<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u96be\u770b <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>n\u00e1n k\u00e0n<\/i><\/td>Ugly<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u77ee <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>\u01cei<\/i><\/td>Short<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

If you want to compliment someone’s appearance without pointing anything out in particular, you can just say \u8eab\u6750\u597d<\/strong>, which literally means “good body” or “good figure.”<\/p>\n

What about \u7626<\/strong>? As with Western culture, the word “skinny” can be a positive or a negative, though it’s usually positive since being thin is considered a desired trait, especially for women. In Chinese culture, the term is generally positive by default. You can make a woman happy just by telling her \u4f60\u5f88\u7626<\/strong> (n\u01d0 h\u011bn sh\u00f2u)<\/em> \u2014 you are thin\/slender.<\/p>\n

But it can also be negative. If someone were to say \u4f60\u592a\u7626<\/strong> (n\u01d0 t\u00e0i sh\u00f2u le<\/em> \u2014 you are too skinny), they’d be implying that you should probably eat a bit more. More women in China are actually beginning to eat less<\/a> as they strive for that supermodel-thin image, but that’s a whole other topic.<\/p>\n

As mentioned earlier, there are more politically correct terms for “fat” and “short.”<\/p>\n

As for \u96be\u770b<\/strong>, yeah, I don’t think there’s a nicer word for that. Strangely, the term is used quite often when describing babies. Parents won’t hesitate to use that term when describing how their children looked as infants.<\/p>\n

Adjectives with Different Meanings in Western and Chinese Culture<\/h2>\n

Adjectives may differ in meaning across Western and Chinese cultures<\/a>. What’s considered a positive attribute in one society may not be considered one in another.<\/p>\n

Take the word “gullible,” for example. In English, the term has a negative connotation as it describes someone who’s easy to trick or deceive.<\/p>\n

In Mandarin, an equivalent word is \u8001\u5b9e<\/strong> (l\u01ceo sh\u00ed)<\/em>. But it isn’t exactly negative. It describes someone who\u2014while maybe slightly on the naive end\u2014sees the good in other people and is quick to trust someone.<\/p>\n

Another word is \u5167\u5411<\/strong> (n\u00e8i xi\u00e0ng<\/em> \u2014 introvert). In Chinese culture, this is a fairly neutral term that just refers to someone shy and reserved. In English, “introvert” may more or less mean the same thing. However, some also use the term to describe someone who’s anti-social or lacks self-confidence in front of other people. \u5167\u5411 doesn’t quite have that context.<\/p>\n

Use \u5f88 When Describing a Person<\/h2>\n

In Mandarin Chinese, we use \u5f88 to mean “is” when using adjectives.<\/strong> We never use \u662f<\/strong> (sh\u00ec)<\/em>. For example:<\/p>\n

\u4ed6\u5f88\u9ad8<\/strong> (t\u0101 h\u011bn g\u0101o)<\/em> \u2014 He is tall<\/p>\n

This character is the English equivalent of “very.” In some cases, it’s used to increase the intensity of a thought or feeling. For example, \u6211\u5f88\u60f3\u4f60<\/strong> (w\u01d2 h\u011bn xi\u01ceng n\u01d0<\/em> \u2014 I miss you very much<\/a>), as opposed to simply \u6211\u60f3\u4f60<\/strong> (w\u01d2 xi\u01ceng n\u01d0<\/em> \u2014 I miss you).<\/p>\n

If you insist on using \u662f, you can do so by adding \u4e00\u500b<\/strong> (y\u012b g\u00e8)<\/em> before and \u7684\u4eba<\/strong> (de r\u00e9n)<\/em> after the verb. For example:<\/p>\n

\u4ed6\u662f\u4e00\u500b\u9ad8\u7684\u4eba<\/strong> (t\u0101 sh\u00ec y\u012b g\u00e8 g\u0101o de r\u00e9n)<\/em> \u2014 He is a tall person<\/p>\n

This is wordier, and in spoken conversation, people often just use \u4ed6\u5f88\u9ad8.<\/p>\n

For more information on how to describe a person, FluentU<\/a> has many videos showing natural conversations. You can even look up the terms in this post to see how they’re used by native Chinese speakers.

FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n

<\/p>\r\n

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n \"FluentU\r\n

\r\n