Writing a Descriptive Paragraph — Describing a Person
Learn the exam-ready way to describe someone: their appearance, personality, and interests — with a clear structure and useful vocabulary.
What the exam asks
In the national exam, the descriptive writing task almost always asks you to describe a person — a friend, a family member, or a person you admire. To do it well, you describe three things: their physical appearance, their personality, and their interests.
ماذا يطلب الامتحان؟
في الامتحان الوطني، غالبًا ما يُطلب منك وصف شخص — صديق، أحد أفراد العائلة، أو شخصية تُعجب بها. لكي تنجح، يجب أن تصف ثلاثة أمور: المظهر الجسدي، والشخصية (الطباع)، والاهتمامات والهوايات. احفظ هذا الترتيب جيدًا.
The structure
Follow this simple three-part structure every time. It keeps your paragraph clear and organised — exactly what examiners reward.
Topic sentence — introduce the person: who they are and your relationship. “My best friend Yassine is someone I truly admire.”
1) Physical appearance
Describe appearance in a natural order: height and build, then the face and eyes, then hair, then clothes.
Height/build: tall, short, slim, well-built
Face: round, oval, friendly
Eyes: big, dark, bright, brown
Hair: curly, straight, short, dark
Clothes: casual, smart, simple
He is tall and slim.
She has an oval face and a warm smile.
He has big dark eyes.
She has long curly hair.
He usually wears casual clothes.
2) Personality
Now describe what the person is like on the inside — their character. Try to include one small “but” to sound natural and honest.
3) Interests and hobbies
Finish the body by describing what the person loves doing. This brings them to life.
A model paragraph
Here is a complete example. Notice how it moves from introduction → appearance → personality → interests → feeling.
My cousin Karim is the person I admire most. (introduction) He is a tall, well-built young man with an oval face, big dark eyes, and short curly hair. He usually wears simple, casual clothes. (appearance) Karim is very kind, honest, and hard-working, although he can be a little shy with strangers. (personality) In his free time, he is keen on football and enjoys reading science books. (interests) Honestly, I feel proud to have him as my cousin. (closing feeling)
Introduction: who he is + relationship.
Appearance: build → face → eyes → hair → clothes.
Personality: good traits + a gentle “but”.
Interests: what he loves doing.
Closing: a personal feeling.
Common mistakes to avoid
❌ He is fond of play football. → ✅ He is fond of playing football.
❌ Only listing adjectives: “tall, kind, funny.” → ✅ Put them in full sentences with is / has.
Your turn — test your understanding
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1. In the exam, descriptive writing usually asks you to describe a ___.
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2. Which comes FIRST in the paragraph?
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3. Choose the correct sentence.
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4. Which two verbs are best for appearance?
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5. “He is fond of ___ football.”
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6. Which is a PERSONALITY adjective (not appearance)?
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7. Which is an APPEARANCE adjective?
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8. A good closing sentence gives ___.
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9. Which order is correct for appearance?
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10. “She is keen ___ painting.”
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11. Adding “However, he can be a little shy” makes the description ___.
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12. Which sentence is best?
Write a descriptive paragraph (about 6–8 sentences) describing ONE of these:
- Your best friend
- A member of your family
- A person you admire
Follow the structure: introduce the person → appearance → personality → interests → your feeling. Use is / has, strong adjectives, and remember the -ing form after “fond of / keen on / enjoy”.
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