Describing Character and Personality ESL Activities, Games and Worksheets
In this intriguing describing personality speaking activity, students become matchmakers and try to find a match for a friend or relative by asking and answering questions. In two groups, students think of a male or female friend or relative who is single and would like to find a partner. Students then complete a profile about the person which includes their appearance, positive and negative personality traits, interests, etc. Next, students speak to the people in the other group and try to find a partner for their friend or relative by interviewing as many people as possible before deciding on the best match. Afterwards, students tell the class about the most suitable match they found and explain the reasons for their choice.
In this communicative describing character speaking activity, students practice character adjectives through a dinner party scenario. In pairs, students take turns reading clues to their partner, who matches the information to a person in a dinner party invite list and a character adjective. Both students then complete the list with the information. When the list is complete, pairs discuss and choose three people to invite to their dinner party based on their character and talents. Students then write the details down and give reasons for their choices. Finally, pairs tell the class who they invited to their dinner party and why.
In this useful personality and character adjectives worksheet, students learn and practice 14 adjectives that describe personality or character. First, students find personality and character adjectives in a word search. Students then complete definitions with the personality and character adjectives. Next, students complete sentences with the adjectives of personality and character, adding the prefix 'un-' where necessary. Lastly, in pairs, students discuss the best and worst qualities of each type of person shown using the personality and character adjectives.
Here is a free describing personality worksheet to help students learn and practice a variety of personality adjectives. First, students match personality adjectives from a box with definitions. Students then match each personality adjective with its opposite. Next, students categorise the personality adjectives, according to whether they have a positive, neutral or negative meaning. After that, students complete sentences with the personality adjectives. Students then move on to complete a description of a teacher by underlining the correct personality adjectives. Finally, students write a description of someone they know using the personality adjectives and then read their descriptions to the class.
In this productive describing personality speaking activity, students match hotel guests to rooms from descriptions of their personalities. In pairs, students take turns finding out who is staying in each hotel room by asking their partner to describe the guest staying there, e.g. 'What's the person in room 1 like?' Their partner then looks at the bottom table and describes the personality adjective written below the person's name without using the adjective or person's name in their description, e.g. 'This person likes to talk with other people.' The other student listens and then tries to match the description to a personality adjective and person in the bottom table, e.g. 'Is it Mario?' When the student guesses correctly, they write the hotel guest's name under the room number. The activity continues until both students have found out who is staying in all the hotel rooms. The first pair to finish wins.
In this insightful characterising activity, students describe and characterise people in certain jobs and then use the descriptions to match pictures of people to the jobs. In groups, students describe and characterise the sort of person who does each job shown using adjectives of character, personality and appearance. Next, groups look at their descriptions and assess which description should go with which picture and why. Students may also consider the appearance and overall impressions they get from the pictures to help them make their decisions. Finally, groups compare their ideas and the correct answers are revealed.
Here is an enjoyable personality adjectives crossword to help students practice adjectives of personality and their opposites. In pairs, students take turns asking their partner for a clue to one of their missing personality adjectives. Their partner reads out the definition of the personality adjective, and the other student tries to guess what it is. If the student guesses the word successfully, they write it on their crossword. If not, their partner continues to give more clues until the student is able to guess the adjective. Afterwards, students check their spelling by comparing crosswords.
In this free describing personality speaking activity, students practice asking and answering questions about personality traits. Students begin by going through the items on the worksheet and forming the questions they need to ask to do the activity, e.g. 'Do you like to try new or exciting things?' Students then go around the class, asking and answering the questions about personality traits and completing the worksheet with classmates' answers. When a classmate answers 'yes' to a question, the student writes down their name and asks them to give an example of the trait, e.g. 'Last week, I went skydiving.' Afterwards, go through each item and elicit the adjective that describes the personality trait.
Here is an engaging describing personality game to help students practice positive and negative personality adjectives. In groups, students take turns picking up a card and describing the personality adjective to the group by making sentences with always, usually and hardly ever, writing each sentence on the card as they go. For example, if the personality adjective was adaptable, the student might say, 'I always adjust to new conditions. I usually respond well to change. I'm hardly ever inflexible.' The student is not allowed to say the adjective or variations of the word in their description. The first student to successfully guess the personality adjective being described wins and keeps the card. The student with the most cards at the end of the game wins. Afterwards, review the students' sentences for each personality adjective and have the class agree on a set of clues for each one.
In this fun personality adjectives game, students define and guess adjectives related to personality. In groups, students take turns picking up a card and describing the personality adjective in bold to the group, without saying the adjective or using the underlined words on the card. The first student to successfully guess the personality adjective being described wins and keeps the card. If no one manages to correctly guess the adjective, the student describing keeps the card. The student with the most cards at the end of the game wins.
In this creative describing characteristics activity, students practice the meanings of character adjectives and their opposites. First, students complete sentences on cards demonstrating the characteristic shown without using any form of the adjective in their sentences. Students then go around the class reading their sentences to one another to find a partner with the opposite characteristic. If two students think their sentences show opposite characteristics, they sit down together. When everyone has found a partner, go through the students' sentences and check they are paired correctly, eliciting the matching character adjectives as you go.
