Compound adjectives to describe a person: 20 important adjs

What is a compound adjective? What is an example of a compound adjective? What are compound adjectives examples? What are the types of compound adjectives?

In this post, we’ll define the word compound adjective, give an example of a compound adjective, and list a number of compound adjectives examples with meaning.

Compound Adjectives to Describe a Person

A compound adjective (also called compound modifier) is made up of two or more words that work jointly to modify the same noun.

When compound adjectives are used before the noun they modify, they are usually hyphenated (joined together by a hyphen).

‘Hard-working’ and ‘well-known’ are examples of compound adjectives. They can be used to modify or describe a noun. For example, we can say:

• They are hard-working people. they work hard.
• He’s a well-known actor. He satrred in dozens of well-knwon movies.

Notice that the adjective ‘hard-working’ is made up of two words, that is why it is called a COMPOUND adjective. Notice, also, that this compound adjective describes or modifies the noun ‘people’. So it is hyphenated.

Compound adjectives whose first part is self are hyphenated as well. The words joined together by a hyphen are also known as hyphenated words. Below is a list of hyphenated words to describe someone.

How Do You Identify a Compound Adjective and What Are the Types of Compound Adjectives?

Compound adjectives are not necessarily made up of two adjectives. You can make compound adjectives by joining two different parts of speech. For instance,

Adjective	Present participle	Compound adjectives examples
Hard	working	Hard-working
Time	saving	Time-saving

Adjective	Past participle	Compound adjectives examples
Bad	tempered	Bad-tempered
Open	minded	Open-minded

Noun	Past participle	Compound adjectives examples
level	headed	Level-headed

Past participle	Adjective/noun	Compound adjectives examples
Laid	back	Laid-back

As you can notice, the tables above show that a compound adjective can be formed by different parts of speech and cannot be defined by the words it contains. In brief, when two or more words are together to describe a noun, they make a compound adjective.

Here is a compound adjectives list:

Compound adjectives to describe a person (Compound adjectives describing character)

Compound Adjectives Examples

This list contains a number of compound adjectives examples that can describe a person along with meaning.

• Hard-working

A hard-working person always does a lot of work.

• Good-natured

Naturally friendly and does not get angry easily.

• Over-confident

Too sure about yourself and your abilities.

• Strong-willed

Very determined to do what you want to do.

• Weak-willed

Not determined enough to succeed in what you want to do.

• Strong-minded

Somebody who is strong-minded is not willing to change their opinions and beliefs.

• Broad-minded

Happy to accept ideas and ways of life different from your own.

• Open-minded

Willing to accept opinions and ideas which are different from yours.

• Narrow-minded

Not willing to accept ideas or ways of behaving that are different from your own.

• Bad-tempered

Often annoyed, angry, or impatient.

• Short-tempered

If someone is short-tempered, he or she gets angry easily for no good reason.

• Easy-going

Calm and relaxed; not easily worried or upset.

• Big-headed

You think you are more intelligent or more important than you really are.

• Thick-skinned

If you are thick-skinned, you are not easily hurt by criticism.

• Cold-hearted

If you are cold-hearted, you don’t feel sorry about other people’s suffering.

• Level-headed

Calm and sensible; able to make good decisions even in difficult situations.

• Laid-back

You are not usually worried about other people’s behavior or things that need to be done.

Compound Adjectives Personality with Self

Compound adjectives with self are usually hyphenated. These adjectives describe personality or character.

• Self-assured

You have confidence in your own abilities.

• Well-behaved

Behave in a quiet and polite way.

• Self-centered

Interested only in yourself.

• Self-conscious

uncomfortable or nervous because you are worried about what other people think about you or your behavior.

• Self-absorbed
• Self-aggrandizing
• Self-assertive
• Self-aware

Related Posts:

Adjectives That Start With N

Common Incomparable Adjectives List: 30+ Absolute Adjectives

Compound words: 50 + Important Compound Adjectives and Nouns

Appearance Vocabulary: 12 Essential Adjectives

Adjectives to Describe a Person

Here is a list of adjectives to describe a person:

Positive adjectives to describe a person	Negative adjectives to describe a person
Nice	Pessimistic
Generous	Jealous
Affectionate	intolerant
Agreeable	Lazy
Ambitious	Mean
Good	Bad
Great	Nasty
Determined	Obstinate
Diplomatic	Careless
Dynamic	Impolite
Calm	Irresponsible
Clever	Boring
Cheerful	Cruel
Compassionate	Impatient
Communicative	Selfish

Other Adjectives That Describe Person

These adjectives and compound adjectives to describe a person are really interesting. So, which compound adjectives describe your personality?

Do this character adjectives quiz here to test your knowledge of compound adjectives.

This list of compound adjectives to describe a person is not exhaustive.