Using Qualifiers about Personality in English

Using Qualifiers about Personality in English

 

Qualifiers help us show how much so

mething is true or how strong it is. They can also make a statement sound softer or less strong.

For example, one sentence starter we used was:

• I guess I’m pretty reserved.

Here, we have two qualifiers:

1. I guess - This shows that you are not completely sure.
2. Pretty - In this context, it doesn’t mean beautiful, but rather that someone is somewhat or quite reserved.

Think about a friend who you might describe as ‘quiet.’ Is your friend very quiet or just a little quiet? Qualifiers show how much of an adjective is true.

A qualifier always comes before an adjective or adverb. Here are some examples for talking about personality traits:

• very
• quite
• rather
• somewhat
• fairly
• really
• pretty
• a bit
• a little
• a (whole) lot
• kind of
• sort of

 

Examples:

• He’s fairly quiet at work, but he becomes rather talkative outside of the office.
• She’s pretty studious. She’ll definitely do well on her final exams.
• He's really confident when giving presentations, but he can be somewhat shy in social settings.
• She’s a bit cautious when it comes to trying new things, but she's very adventurous once she feels comfortable.
• I'm kind of meticulous about my work; I like to make sure everything is just right.
• They are quite enthusiastic about volunteering and always bring a lot of energy to the team.
• She's a little bit reserved at parties, but she's a whole lot of fun once you get to know her.
• He can be fairly stubborn when he believes he is right, but he's usually open to other ideas.
• I'm pretty organized with my schedule, which helps me manage my time well.
• She's somewhat patient with children, but she gets very frustrated when things don't go as planned.
• He's a bit skeptical about new technologies, but he's also quite curious to learn how they work.
• I'm rather laid-back in most situations, but I can be very assertive when it comes to important matters.