Describing Personality in Chinese: 100+ Essential Words

Have you ever struggled when describing personality in Chinese, whether it’s a friendly close friend, a strict boss, or a humorous colleague? Expanding your vocabulary related to personality will help you communicate more naturally in daily situations. In this article, Ni Hao Ma will introduce you to a collection of vocabulary for describing personality in Chinese, helping you use the language more flexibly when you want to describe someone in conversation.

Vocabulary for Describing personality in Chinese

Personality is one of the most important aspects to mention when you want to describe or talk about someone in Chinese. There are plenty of useful words to describe a person’s character in day-to-day conversations. In the table below, Ni Hao Ma has compiled over 100 of the most common Chinese personality words, helping you become more fluent and accurate when describing personality in Chinese.

No.	Chinese	Pinyin	English
1	诚实	chéngshí	Honest
2	善良	shànliáng	Kind-hearted
3	有耐心	yǒu nàixīn	Patient
4	开朗	kāilǎng	Outgoing / Cheerful
5	乐观	lèguān	Optimistic
6	体贴	tǐtiē	Considerate
7	勤奋	qínfèn	Diligent / Hardworking
8	负责	fùzé	Responsible
9	幽默	yōumò	Humorous
10	坚强	jiānqiáng	Strong / Tough
11	谦虚	qiānxū	Humble
12	热情	rèqíng	Enthusiastic
13	正直	zhèngzhí	Honest / Upright
14	友善	yǒushàn	Friendly
15	礼貌	lǐmào	Polite / Courteous
16	守信	shǒuxìn	Trustworthy
17	忠诚	zhōngchéng	Loyal
18	敬业	jìngyè	Dedicated to work
19	合群	héqún	Sociable / Cooperative
20	冷静	lěngjìng	Calm
21	大方	dàfāng	Generous
22	细心	xìxīn	Careful / Attentive
23	有智慧	yǒu zhìhuì	Wise
24	沉着	chénzhuó	Composed / Steady
25	坚定	jiāndìng	Determined / Resolute
26	灵活	línghuó	Flexible / Adaptable
27	积极	jījí	Positive / Proactive
28	值得信赖	zhídé xìnlài	Reliable / Dependable
29	认真	rènzhēn	Serious / Earnest
30	懂事	dǒngshì	Sensible / Mature
31	坦率	tǎnshuài	Frank / Straightforward
32	有同情心	yǒu tóngqíngxīn	Compassionate
33	谨慎	jǐnshèn	Cautious / Prudent
34	平易近人	píngyì jìnrén	Approachable / Easy-going
35	勇敢	yǒnggǎn	Brave / Courageous
36	坚强	jiānqiáng	Strong-willed (Repeated)
37	有理想	yǒu lǐxiǎng	Idealistic
38	忍耐	rěnnài	Tolerant / Enduring
39	知足	zhīzú	Content / Satisfied
40	慷慨	kāngkǎi	Generous
41	能干	nénggàn	Capable / Competent
42	明理	mínglǐ	Rational / Reasonable
43	有毅力	yǒu yìlì	Persistent / Strong-willed
44	包容	bāoróng	Tolerant / Accepting
45	热心	rèxīn	Warm-hearted / Helpful
46	有爱心	yǒu àixīn	Loving / Kind-hearted
47	真诚	zhēnchéng	Sincere
48	自律	zìlǜ	Self-disciplined
49	高尚	gāoshàng	Noble / High-minded
50	远见	yuǎnjiàn	Visionary / Farsighted

No.	Chinese	Pinyin	English
51	自私	zìsī	Selfish
52	虚伪	xūwěi	Hypocritical
53	冷漠	lěngmò	Indifferent
54	傲慢	àomàn	Arrogant
55	暴躁	bàozào	Irritable
56	固执	gùzhí	Stubborn
57	小气	xiǎoqì	Stingy, petty
58	胆怯	dǎnqiè	Timid
59	狡猾	jiǎohuá	Cunning
60	自大	zìdà	Conceited
61	懦弱	nuòruò	Weak, cowardly
62	粗鲁	cūlǔ	Rude
63	懒惰	lǎnduò	Lazy
64	多疑	duōyí	Suspicious
65	自负	zìfù	Overconfident
66	多嘴	duōzuǐ	Talkative (neg.)
67	嬌气	jiāoqì	Spoiled, whiny
68	贪玩	tānwán	Playful (too much)
69	好奇	hàoqí	Overly curious
70	短视	duǎnshì	Shortsighted
71	狂妄	kuángwàng	Presumptuous
72	冲动	chōngdòng	Impulsive
73	骄傲	jiāo’ào	Proud, arrogant
74	无耻	wúchǐ	Shameless
75	怨恨	yuànhèn	Resentful
76	偏执	piānzhí	Obsessive
77	残忍	cánrěn	Cruel
78	鲁莽	lǔmǎng	Reckless
79	专横	zhuānhèng	Domineering
80	悲观	bēiguān	Pessimistic
81	苛刻	kēkè	Harsh
82	幼稚	yòuzhì	Childish
83	独断	dúduàn	Autocratic
84	阴险	yīnxiǎn	Sinister
85	抱怨	bàoyuàn	Complaining
86	刻薄	kèbó	Mean, harsh
87	恶毒	èdú	Malicious
88	粗心	cūxīn	Careless
89	急躁	jízào	Impatient
90	说谎	shuōhuǎng	Lying
91	贪婪	tānlán	Greedy
92	自恋	zìliàn	Narcissistic
93	无情	wúqíng	Heartless
94	心狠手辣	xīnhěn shǒulà	Ruthless
95	没教养	méi jiàoyǎng	Ill-mannered
96	轻浮	qīngfú	Frivolous
97	拖延	tuōyán	Procrastinating
98	大意	dàyì	Negligent
99	不合群	bù héqún	Unsociable
100	笨拙	bènzhuō	Clumsy
101	势利	shìli	Snobbish
102	跋扈	báhù	Overbearing
103	乖戾	guāilì	Perverse
104	狡诈	jiǎozhà	Deceitful
105	粗暴	cūbào	Violent
106	浮夸	fúkuā	Ostentatious
107	草率	cǎoshuài	Sloppy
108	卑鄙	bēibǐ	Despicable
109	任性	rènxìng	Capricious
110	轻佻	qīngtiāo	Flippant

Sample Sentences Using Chinese Vocabulary About Personality

Describing someone’s personality is a common topic in communication. Below are some sentence patterns you can use to describe a person’s character.

Subject + 很 / 比较 / 非常 (hěn / bǐjiào / fēicháng) + Adjective
(Subject + very / quite / extremely + adjective)

Examples:

• 她很开朗。(Tā hěn kāilǎng.) – She is very outgoing.
• 他比较内向。(Tā bǐjiào nèixiàng.) – He is quite introverted.
• 我的朋友非常善良。(Wǒ de péngyou fēicháng shànliáng.) – My friend is extremely kind.

Subject + 是 一个 + Adjective + 的人
(Subject + shì yí gè + adjective + de rén)
Used to say “someone is a … person.”

Examples:

• 他是一个认真的人。(Tā shì yí gè rènzhēn de rén.) – He is a serious person.
• 她是一个热情的人。(Tā shì yí gè rèqíng de rén.) – She is a passionate person.
• 他是一个很有耐心的人。(Tā shì yí gè hěn yǒu nàixīn de rén.) – He is a very patient person.

Subject + 有点 + Negative Personality Trait
(Subject + yǒudiǎn + negative adjective)
Used to describe slightly negative traits.

Examples:

• 他有点骄傲。(Tā yǒudiǎn jiāo’ào.) – He is a bit arrogant.
• 孩子有点胆怯。(Háizi yǒudiǎn dǎnqiè.) – The child is a little timid.
• 老板有点不耐烦。(Lǎobǎn yǒudiǎn bù nàifán.) – The boss is a bit impatient.

Sample Dialogues Using Chinese Personality Vocabulary

In daily life, we often need to describe our own or someone else’s personality. To help you practice more effectively, here are some example dialogues for reference.

Dialogue 1

A: 你认识那个总是坐在前排的女孩吗？
(Nǐ rènshi nàge zǒngshì zuò zài qiánpái de nǚhái ma?)
Do you know the girl who always sits in the front row?

B: 你说小芳？她很外向，也很幽默。
(Nǐ shuō Xiǎofāng? Tā hěn wàixiàng, yě hěn yōumò.)
You mean Xiaofang? She’s very outgoing and humorous.

A: 对，她跟谁都能聊得来。
(Duì, tā gēn shéi dōu néng liáo de lái.)
Yes, she can talk with anyone easily.

Dialogue 2

A: Teacher, what do you think about Xiao Ming’s recent studies?
(Lǎoshī, nín juéde Xiǎo Míng zuìjìn xuéxí zěnmeyàng?)

B: Xiao Ming is very intelligent. No matter what I teach, he can understand it quickly.
(Xiǎo Míng fēicháng cōngmíng. Wúlùn wǒ jiǎng shénme, tā dōu néng hěn kuài lǐjiě.)

A: Yes, he’s always been like that since he was little. Moreover, he’s very flexible in problem-solving — not the rigid type.
(Shì a, tā cóngxiǎo jiù zhèyàng. Érqiě tā jiějué wèntí yě hěn línghuó.)

B: Exactly, he’s very creative and always comes up with unique solutions.
(Méicuò, tā hěn yǒu chuàngzàolì, zǒng néng xiǎng chū yīxiē dútè de bànfǎ.)

Dialogue 3

A: Do you think something’s off with Xiao Fang lately? She seems to have become very suspicious.
(Nǐ juéde Xiǎofāng zuìjìn shì bu shì yǒudiǎnr bù duìjìn? Tā hǎoxiàng biànde hěn duōyí.)

B: Yes, and recently she’s been rather indifferent to everyone — she seems a bit pessimistic.
(Shì a, érqiě tā zuìjìn duì shéi dōu tǐng lěngmò de, gǎnjué yǒudiǎn bēiguān.)

A: Maybe she’s been going through something upsetting lately.
(Yěxǔ tā zuìjìn yùdào le shénme bù kāixīn de shìqíng ba.)

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Conclusion

We hope that with this list of over 100 vocabulary words for describing personality in Chinese, you’ll feel more confident when communicating in everyday situations. These expressions will help you clearly and specifically convey your thoughts and impressions about someone’s character. We hope Ni Hao Ma has provided you with useful knowledge — don’t forget to bookmark this article for future reference!