Glossary of Terms Used to Describe Personalities

These adjectives are presented here with definitions that apply to personality descriptions as used in IC3 Level 2 Listening and Speaking Chapter 1. The words are not presented with all of their definitions. These definitions have been presented with help from the Merriam Webster Online Dictionary: http://www.m-w.com/dictionary

Someone who is . . .

1. active

is energetic and cannot sit still for very long. This person is busy and doing things most of the time.

2. analytical

is skilled in using analysis in order to understand; breaking down or separating elements into parts to understand.

3. balanced

is steady emotionally and mentally.

4. carefree

is free of worry and responsibility—childlike.

5. cheerful

is merry and full of good spirits; happy and not gloomy.

6. confident

shows assurance and self-reliance.

7. curious

has inquisitive interest and wants to investigate in order to learn.

8. dependable

is reliable and responsible.

9. discreet

shows good judgment in behavior and is not showy or obtrusive.

10. dreamy

is pleasantly abstracted from reality. Someone who easily day-dreams or fantasizes.

11. dynamic

is energetic and forceful and usually involved in productive activity or change.

12. easy

is free, natural and spontaneous.

13. easy-going

is socially at ease; does not annoy easily; takes things as they come.

14. elegant

is of high quality and grace usually in appearance.

15. emotional

is dominated by one’s feelings: if sad is quick to cry and so on.

16. extroverted

is a gregarious and unreserved person.

17. flexible

is able to change plans easily; not strongly attached to routine; accommodating.

18. harmonious

is agreeable; able to become a part of something easily.

19. high quality

is full of integrity.

20. human

is susceptible to or representative of the sympathies and frailties of human nature.

21. independent

is not subject to being controlled by others; not looking to others for one's opinions or for guidance in conduct.

22. instinctive

has ability to follow natural impulse; usually quick to know what to do in situations based on a natural feeling or inner voice.

23. introspective

examines one’s own inner thoughts and feelings; reflective; thinks things through with depth and awareness.

24. intuitive

is insightful; easily understands situations or how someone else if feeling.

25. natural

is marked by easy simplicity and freedom from artificiality, affectation, or constraint; genuine.

26. non-aggressive

does not show a force in intent; not threatening; does not pursue interests with strength or forcefulness.

27. optimistic

has a positive outlook on life; believes that the best will come.

28. peaceful

is tranquil and content.

29. playful

is childlike; easy to laugh and play; humorous.

30. practical

is actively engaged in some course of action or occupation; does not idealize a situation or look at a situation in abstract; concrete in action.

31. pragmatic

is relating to matters of fact or practical affairs often to the exclusion of intellectual or artistic matters : practical as opposed to idealistic.

32. professional

is characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession; exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace.

33. rational

has reason or understanding relating to, based on, or agreeable to reason; reasonable.

34. reflective

is thoughtful and deliberative.

35. responsible

is able to answer for one's conduct and obligations; trustworthy; is able to choose for oneself between right and wrong.

36. romantic

is marked by the imaginative or emotional appeal of what is heroic, adventurous, remote, mysterious, or idealized.

37. self-assured

is self-confident; sure of oneself

38. sensitive

is easily hurt emotionally; delicately aware of the attitudes and feelings of others.

39. skeptical

is doubtful and uncertain; tends to believe or judge with great caution; has a negative outlook on life.

40. social

easily makes friends with others; feels comfortable in relationships.

41. sophisticated

has a refined knowledge of the ways of the world cultivated especially through wide experience.

42. spontaneous

acts from impulse and from natural feeling or native tendency without external constraint.

43. superficial

is shallow thinking—not understanding situations with depth; concerned only with the obvious or apparent.

44. tranquil

is calm and free from disturbance to mind and spirit.

45. trustworthy

is dependable and worthy of confidence and trust.

46. uncomplicated

is simple; not complex.

47. unconventional

is out of the ordinary; does not follow the crowd.

48. warm

readily shows affection, gratitude, cordiality, or sympathy.