The first english language faculty the department of english phonetics and phonology

2.2. Describing things in English and their typological analysis in Uzbek

One of the first things you learn when you start studying a language is how to describe things. It doesn’t matter if you’re studying English, French or Swahili, all beginner level learners are introduced to the basic words they need to describe people, places, feelings and events.

Nonetheless, in everyday life we don’t often have conversations in which we directly describe our clothing, the objects in a room or the people in our extended family. So why is it that description is such an important skill to learn? More importantly, what are some strategies beginner and intermediate level learners can use to get better at describing things and progress in their language learning?

According to Jakobson, there are 6 designated language functions that people use in communication and one of them is the referential function which deals with describing things such as objects, emotions and events. If you think about it, while we aren’t always giving the blunt kind of descriptions you find in beginner level English language exercises (e.g. The girl is tall. The boy is short.), it’s pretty hard to go more than a few phrases without describing something to the person you’re speaking with.²⁵

This is because when we communicate with other people we are sharing our world view, our opinions and our experiences. How else can we ensure we have been understood if we don’t describe things as clearly and accurately as possible?

So first of all let’s answer to the question: What’s in a description?

When you think about how to describe something, typically adjectives are the first words that come to mind. They are descriptive words but they’re not the only ones you’ll need if you want to get ambitious in your grammar exercises. Gerunds, adverbs and even verbs can play an equally important role in creating dynamic descriptions, especially in English.

1. Pick your subject. Always start with things you’re actually interested in. If describing the furniture in your living room sounds less than exciting, don’t do it! Describe that motorcyle or dream house you’ve always wanted.

2. Identify your verb. In English, the verb ‘to be’ is always a good choice when it comes to a verb that can be used to describe almost anything. If you’re at an intermediate level, try something more ambitious than ‘to be.’ In any case, start with one verb, particularly for languages other than English where you might have to do some complicated conjugations.

3. Gather some adjectives. Make a list of your favorite English adjectives. Look them up in the dictionary and then start brainstorming additional words you might need to describe your subject.

4. Draw a chart. Make your life easier and create a chart where you can practice describing things or people. If you’re learning English, you would have subjects on the left, your main verb in the middle and your list of adjectives on the right. Now all you have to do is connect the dots!

5. Get to work. Start by writing down the descriptive sentences your chart gives you. Next, see if you can come up with a few more ways to describe what your subjects look like in English. Physical descriptions are more concrete and you should always start there before going into abstract or figurative language.