Words to describe personality

About this list

These are adjectives Wiktionary files under personality, each with its meaning. Unlike the other pages here, the list is modern rather than Roget’s, which suits character sketches and profiles.

200 adjectives

abrasive

Producing abrasion; rough enough to wear away the outer surface.

admirable

Deserving of the highest esteem or admiration; estimable.

affectionate

Having affection or warm regard; loving; fond.

aggressive

Characterized by aggression; highly combative; prone to behave in a way that involves attacking (especially if unjustly) or arguing.

ambitious

Having or showing ambition; wanting a lot of power, honor, respect, superiority, or other distinction.

annoying

Causing irritation or annoyance; troublesome; vexatious.

argumentative

Of or relating to argumentation; specifically, presenting a logical argument or line of reasoning; argumentive, discursive.

articulate

Clear; effective.

assertive

Boldly self-assured; confident without being aggressive.

astute

Quickly and critically discerning.

authentic

Of the same origin as claimed; genuine.

authoritarian

Of, or relating to, or exhibiting strict obedience to an authority; favoring authoritarianism over civic and individual liberties.

belligerent

Engaged in warfare, warring.

benevolent

Having a disposition to do good.

bohemian

Unconventional, especially in habit or dress.

bossy

Tending to give orders to others, especially when unwarranted; domineering.

brash

Overly bold or self-assertive to the point of being insensitive, tactless or impudent; shameless.

brazen

Made of brass.

brutish

Of, or in the manner of a brute.

buoyant

Having buoyancy; able to float.

calculating

Having the ability to calculate.

captivating

That captivates; fascinating.

catty

Resembling or characteristic of a cat.

caustic

Capable of burning, corroding or destroying organic tissue.

cerebral

Of or relating to the brain, cerebrum, or cerebral cortex.

charming

Pleasant, charismatic.

chatty

Of a person, chatting a lot or fond of chatting.

childish

Immature in thought or behaviour.

clumsy

Awkward, lacking coordination, not graceful, not dextrous.

colorful

Possessing prominent and varied colors.

competitive

Of or pertaining to competition.

compulsive

Uncontrolled or reactive and irresistible.

conceited

Having an excessively favourable opinion of one's abilities, appearance, etc.; egotistical and vain.

condescending

Assuming a tone of superiority, or a patronizing attitude.

conniving

That connives; conspiratorial.

crafty

Skillful at deceiving others.

crank

Hard; difficult.

crazy

Of unsound mind; insane; demented.

cuddly

Suitable for cuddling; designed to be cuddled.

cultured

Learned in the ways of civilized society; civilized; refined.

curt

Brief or terse, especially to the point of being rude.

cynic

Synonym of cynical.

cynical

Of or relating to the belief that human actions are motivated only or primarily by base desires or selfishness.

defiant

Defying.

dignified

Having an attitude or bearing that connotes respectability and poise.

diplomatic

Concerning the relationships between the governments of countries.

disciplined

Possessing mental discipline.

down-to-earth

Practical; realistic; pragmatic.

dramatic

Of or relating to the drama.

driven

Obsessed; passionately motivated to achieve goals.

droll

Oddly humorous; whimsical, amusing in a quaint way; waggish.

efficient

Making good, thorough, or careful use of resources; not consuming extra. Especially, making good use of time or energy.

egotistical

Tending to talk excessively about oneself.

elegant

Characterised by or exhibiting elegance; having grace, refinement, or tasteful simplicity.

eloquent

Fluently persuasive and articulate.

endearing

Inspiring affection or love, often in a childlike way.

energetic

Possessing or pertaining to energy.

engaging

Tending to engage attention or interest; engrossing, interesting; enthralling.

enterprising

Displaying bravery and daring in attempting some task.

entertaining

Very amusing; that entertains.

faithful

Loyal; adhering firmly to person or cause.

fake

Not real; false, fraudulent.

fearful

Frightening; causing fear.

fickle

Quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance; insincere; not loyal or reliable.

flamboyant

Showy, bold or audacious in behaviour, appearance, style, etc.; ostentatious.

flippant

Showing disrespect through a casual attitude, levity, and a lack of due seriousness; pert.

flirtatious

Of or pertaining to flirtation.

foolhardy

Marked by unthinking recklessness with disregard for danger; boldly rash; hotheaded.

foolish

Lacking good sense or judgement as a general trait; unwise; stupid.

fussy

Anxious or particular about petty details; hard to please.

gallant

Brave, valiant, courteous, especially with regard to male attitudes towards women.

genteel

Affectedly proper or refined; somewhat prudish refinement; excessively polite.

gentlemanly

Of, being, pertaining to, or resembling a gentleman or gentlemen.

genuine

Belonging to, or proceeding from the original stock; native.

graceful

Having or showing grace in movement, shape, or proportion.

gracious

Of, related to, full of, or exhibiting grace.

gritty

Containing sand or grit; consisting of grit; caused by grit; full of hard particles.

gruff

having a rough, surly, and harsh demeanor and nature.

guarded

Cautious; restrained.

hateful

Evoking a feeling of hatred.

heady

Intoxicating or stupefying.

high and mighty

Overbearingly arrogant; ostentatiously self-important or self-aggrandizing.

honorable

Behaving in a manner that shows honor; decent, having integrity.

hostile

Not friendly; appropriate to an enemy; showing the disposition of an enemy; showing ill will and malevolence or a desire to thwart and injure.

hyperactive

Having an increased state of activity

imaginative

Having a lively or creative imagination.

immature

Occurring before the proper time; untimely, premature (especially of death).

impetuous

Making arbitrary decisions, especially in an impulsive and forceful manner.

inconsiderate

Not considerate of others.

indecisive

Of a person, not decisive, not marked by promptness or decision.

individualistic

More interested in individual people than in society as a whole.

innocent

Free from guilt, sin, or immorality.

innovative

Characterized by the creation of new ideas or inventions.

inquisitive

Eager to acquire knowledge; acquisitive.

insolent

Insulting in manner or words, particularly in an arrogant or insubordinate manner.

intense

Of a characteristic: extreme or very high or strong in degree; severe; also, excessive, towering.

interesting

Of concern; affecting, important.

intractable

Not tractable; not able to be managed, controlled, governed or directed.

judgmental

Of or relating to judgment.

kooky

Eccentric, strange, or foolish; crazy or insane; kookish.

lazy

Unwilling to do work or make an effort; disinclined to exertion.

logical

In agreement with the principles of logic.

loud

Of great intensity.

lovely

Delightful for beauty, harmony, or grace.

loyal

Having or demonstrating undivided and constant support for someone or something.

materialistic

Being overly concerned with material possessions and wealth.

mean

Common; general.

melodramatic

Of or pertaining to melodrama; like or suitable to a melodrama; unnatural in situation or action.

mighty

Very strong; possessing might.

mischievous

Causing mischief; injurious.

naive

Lacking worldly experience, wisdom, or judgement; unsophisticated.

narcissistic

Of or pertaining to the nature of narcissism.

narrow-minded

Having restricted or rigid views, and being unreceptive to new ideas.

nasty

Dirty, filthy.

natty

Smart and fashionable.

needy

In need; poor.

neurotic

Affected with a neurosis.

obnoxious

Extremely offensive or unpleasant; very annoying, contemptible, or odious.

observant

Alert and paying close attention; watchful.

obsessive

Prone to cause obsession.

offensive

Causing offense; arousing a visceral reaction of disgust, anger, hatred, sadness, or indignation.

oily

Covered with or containing oil.

old-fashioned

Of an object, outdated or no longer in vogue.

opinionated

Having very strong opinions.

optimistic

Expecting the best in all possible ways.

organized

Of things or settings, having been organized; in good order.

ostentatious

Of ostentation.

out there

Extreme; radical; far removed from the ordinary; crazy, nutty, loony.

outspoken

Speaking, or spoken, freely, openly, or boldly; vocal; frank.

paranoid

Of, related to, or suffering from clinical paranoia.

patronizing

Offensively condescending.

perceptive

Having or showing keenness or sharpness of perception, insight, understanding, or intuition.

persistent

Obstinately refusing to give up or let go.

pessimistic

Marked by pessimism and little hopefulness; expecting the worst.

picky

Fussy; particular; demanding to have things just right.

pious

Of or pertaining to piety, exhibiting piety, devout, god-fearing.

pleasant

Giving pleasure; pleasing in manner.

polished

Made smooth or shiny by polishing.

polite

Well-mannered, civilized.

politic

Of or relating to polity, or civil government; political.

pretentious

Motivated by an inappropriate, excessive, or unjustified desire to impress others.

principled

Based on, having, or manifesting principles

protective

Serving or intended to protect.

provocative

Serving or tending to elicit a strong, often negative sentiment in another person; exasperating.

rash

Acting too quickly without considering the consequences and risks; not careful; hasty.

reckless

Careless or heedless; headstrong or rash.

refined

Sagacious, sometimes (derogatory) oversubtle or feigning sagacity.

reliable

Suitable or fit to be relied on; worthy of dependence, reliance or trust; dependable, trustworthy

reserved

Self-restrained in the expression of emotions or opinions.

resilient

Returning quickly to original shape after force is applied; elastic. (of objects or substances)

responsible

Having the duty of taking care of something; answerable for an act performed or for its consequences; accountable; amenable, especially legally or politically.

reticent

Unwilling to communicate; keeping one's thoughts and opinions to oneself; reserved or restrained.

sassy

Bold and spirited, often towards someone in authority; cheeky; impudent; saucy.

scrupulous

Exactly and carefully conducted.

self-centered

Egotistically obsessed with oneself.

self-righteous

Piously self-assured and smugly moralistic.

self-sufficient

Able to provide for oneself independently of others; not needing external support.

sentimental

Characterized by sentiment, sentimentality or excess emotion; appealing to the emotions (especially tender emotions) rather than reason, morality, aesthetic taste, etc.

shallow

Having little depth; significantly less deep than wide.

silly

Laughable or amusing through foolishness or a foolish appearance.

sleazy

Marked by low quality; inferior; inadequate.

sly

Artfully cunning; secretly mischievous; wily.

snappy

Rapid and without delay.

snarky

Snide and sarcastic; usually out of irritation.

sociopathic

Having the characteristics of a sociopath.

sophisticated

Of a person: having obtained worldly experience, and lacking naiveté; cosmopolitan, worldly-wise.

spiritual

Of or pertaining to the spirit or the soul.

stiff-necked

Having a stiff neck; suffering from torticollis

stingy

Unwilling to spend, give, or share; ungenerous; mean.

stoic

Of or relating to the Stoics or their ideas.

strange

Not normal; odd, unusual, surprising, out of the ordinary, often with a negative connotation.

strict

Strained; drawn close; tight.

strong-minded

Having a vigorous, independent will and views.

stuffy

Poorly ventilated; partially plugged.

suave

Of a person, charming, though often in a manner that is insincere or sophisticated.

sympathetic

Of, related to, feeling, showing, or characterized by sympathy.

talkative

Tending to talk a lot.

tenacious

Clinging to an object or surface; adhesive.

thoughtful

Demonstrating thought or careful consideration.

two-faced

Having two faces or plane surfaces.

unconventional

Not adhering to custom, convention, or accepted standards.

undaunted

Showing courage and resolution.

unfriendly

Not friendly; hostile; mean.

ungodly

Of a person: lacking reverence for God; of an action: not in accordance with God's will or religious teachings.

unpredictable

Unable to be predicted.

vicious

Violent, destructive and cruel.

villainous

Of, relating to, or appropriate to a villain.

vindictive

Having a tendency to seek revenge when wronged, vengeful.

wacky

Zany; eccentric.

warm-hearted

Amicable and friendly.

well-bred

Of good breed.

well-rounded

Of a person's development or education, having a balanced variety of attributes.

whiny

Whining; tending to whine or complain.

wild

Especially, being of the wild type: being of an unbroken ancestral line of undomesticated animals, as opposed to being feral, being an undomesticated animal whose ancestors were domesticated.

wilful

Intentional; deliberate.

wise

Showing good judgement or the benefit of experience.

withdrawn

Removed from circulation.

witty

Clever; amusingly ingenious.

workaholic

In the nature or manner of a workaholic.

zany

Unusual and awkward in a funny, comical manner; outlandish; clownish.