Japanese Lesson 16 – Describing People · N5

📋 Expression Reference — Describing People

Key phrases across formality levels. Press ▶ to hear any expression.

STANDARD — ていねい (TEINEI)

Expression	Romaji	Typical Response	Context
せがたかいです	Se ga takai desu	—	Describing height (tall)
せがひくいです	Se ga hikui desu	—	Describing height (short)
かみがながいです	Kami ga nagai desu	—	Describing hair (long)
かみがみじかいです	Kami ga mijikai desu	—	Describing hair (short)
めがねをかけています	Megane wo kakete imasu	—	Wears glasses
どんなひとですか？	Donna hito desu ka?	せがたかくて、やせています Se ga takakute, yasete imasu	Asking for a description

CASUAL — カジュアル

Expression	Romaji	Typical Response	Context
せ、たかいよね	Se, takai yo ne	うん、たかいね Un, takai ne	Height (casual)
かっこいい！	Kakkoii!	ほんとだね Honto da ne	Cool/handsome
かわいいね	Kawaii ne	ねー！ Nee!	Cute
めがねかけてる	Megane kaketeru	—	Glasses (casual)

🗣 Mini Dialogues

Three scenes at different formality levels. Press ▶ to hear each line.

A — STANDARD · Meeting Point (Phone Call)

みさき

ケビンさん、わたしのともだちはせがたかくて、かみがながいです。

Kevin-san, watashi no tomodachi wa se ga takakute, kami ga nagai desu.

Kevin, my friend is tall with long hair.

[PERSON] はせがたかくて、かみがながいです

[PERSON] wa se ga takakute, kami ga nagai desu

[person] [topic] height [tall-and], hair [long-is]

→ "[PERSON] is tall with long hair."

ケビン

わかりました。ほかになにかとくちょうはありますか？

Wakarimashita. Hoka ni nanika tokuchou wa arimasu ka?

Got it. Are there any other features?

みさき

あかいぼうしをかぶっています。すぐわかりますよ。

Akai boushi wo kabutte imasu. Sugu wakarimasu yo.

She's wearing a red hat. You'll spot her right away.

[COLOR] [ITEM] を [WEARING VERB] ています

[COLOR] [ITEM] wo [verb] te imasu

[color] [item] [obj] [wearing] is

→ "is wearing a [COLOR] [ITEM]"

B — STANDARD · New Teacher

あかり

あたらしいせんせいにあいましたか？どんなひとですか？

Atarashii sensei ni aimashita ka? Donna hito desu ka?

Have you met the new teacher? What are they like?

たくや

わかくて、めがねをかけているせんせいです。とてもやさしいですよ。

Wakakute, megane wo kakete iru sensei desu. Totemo yasashii desu yo.

A young teacher who wears glasses. Very kind.

あかり

そうですか。せがたかいですか？ひくいですか？

Sou desu ka. Se ga takai desu ka? Hikui desu ka?

I see. Are they tall or short?

C — CASUAL · Celebrity/Idol Discussion

ゆうと

このアイドル、かっこいいよね？

Kono aidoru, kakkoii yo ne?

This idol is cool, right?

はな

うん！せがたかくて、めがおおきいね。

Un! Se ga takakute, me ga ookii ne.

Yeah! Tall with big eyes.

せがたかくて、めがおおきい

se ga takakute, me ga ookii

height [tall-and], eyes [big]

→ "Tall with big eyes"

ゆうと

かみもみじかくて、にあってるよね。

Kami mo mijikakute, niatteru yo ne.

Short hair too, and it suits them.

📋 Key Patterns & Cheatsheet ▼

Describing height

STANDARD

せがたかいです

Se ga takai desu

→ "They are tall."

CASUAL

せ、たかいよね

Se, takai yo ne

→ "Tall, right?"

Describing hair

STANDARD

かみがながいです

Kami ga nagai desu

→ "They have long hair."

CASUAL

かみ、ながいね

Kami, nagai ne

→ "Long hair, huh."

Wearing something

STANDARD

めがねをかけています

Megane wo kakete imasu

→ "They wear glasses."

CASUAL

めがねかけてる

Megane kaketeru

→ "Wears glasses."

Asking for a description

🟢 STANDARD

どんなひとですか？

Donna hito desu ka?

What kind of person?

General question about appearance or personality.

🟡 CASUAL

どんなかんじ？

Donna kanji?

What are they like?

Casual catch-all for description.

A — Flashcards

Click a card to flip it. Use ▶ to hear the Japanese.

tap to flip

1 / 10

B — Listen & Choose the Meaning

Press ▶ to hear each phrase, then choose the correct English meaning.

C — Choose the Right Response

Listen to the question, then choose the most natural reply.

D — Listen & Write in Romaji

Press ▶ to hear each phrase, then type what you heard in romaji. Japanese letters are not needed.

💡 Tip: Long vowels → double the vowel (おう = ou / oo). Double consonants → write them twice (きって = kitte).

E — Shadowing Practice

Press ▶ to hear each line, say it aloud, then mark it as practised.

0 of 9 lines practised

📖 Grammar Notes ▼

～は [ADJ] です (Basic Description)

Use は to mark the person/topic, then add an adjective + です. For い-adjectives, keep the い: せがたかいです. For な-adjectives, add な before nouns but drop it before です: きれいです.

[PERSON] は [ADJ] です

[person] wa [adj] desu

→ "[PERSON] is [ADJ]."

たなかさんはせがたかいです。

Tanaka-san wa se ga takai desu.

Tanaka is tall.

い-adjective て-form (Chaining Descriptions)

To chain two い-adjectives, change the final い to くて: たかい → たかくて、ながい → ながくて. This connects descriptions: "tall AND has long hair."

[ADJ-い] → [ADJ-くて] 、 [ADJ]

[adj-i] → [adj-kute], [adj]

→ "[ADJ] and [ADJ]" — chain descriptions together

せがたかくて、かみがながいです。

Se ga takakute, kami ga nagai desu.

Tall with long hair.

～ている for Ongoing States

～ている describes ongoing states, not just actions in progress. For appearance: めがねをかけている (wears glasses), ぼうしをかぶっている (wearing a hat), やせている (is thin), ふとっている (is heavy-set).

[ITEM] を [VERB-て] います

[item] wo [verb-te] imasu

→ "is [verb]-ing [ITEM]" / "wears [ITEM]"

めがねをかけています。

Megane wo kakete imasu.

They wear glasses.

どんなひとですか？ (Asking for Descriptions)

どんな means "what kind of." Use it to ask about appearance or personality. Answer with specific descriptions.

どんな [NOUN] ですか？

donna [noun] desu ka?

→ "What kind of [NOUN]?"

あたらしいせんせいはどんなひとですか？

Atarashii sensei wa donna hito desu ka?

What's the new teacher like?

～のひと (The Person Who...)

Use [description] + の + ひと to identify someone by their feature: "the person with long hair" = かみがながいひと. When using ている verbs, の is not needed: めがねをかけているひと.

[DESCRIPTION] ひと

[description] hito

→ "the person who [DESCRIPTION]"

めがねをかけているひとはたなかさんです。

Megane wo kakete iru hito wa Tanaka-san desu.

The person wearing glasses is Tanaka.

～より (Comparison)

To compare two things: A は B より [ADJ] です = "A is more [ADJ] than B." Can also use: A のほうが [ADJ] です = "A is more [ADJ]."

[A] は [B] より [ADJ] です

[A] wa [B] yori [adj] desu

→ "[A] is more [ADJ] than [B]."

あにはわたしよりせがたかいです。

Ani wa watashi yori se ga takai desu.

My older brother is taller than me.

📚 Key Vocabulary ▼

Japanese	Romaji	Meaning
せ	se	height / stature
たかい	takai	tall / high
ひくい	hikui	short (height) / low
かみ	kami	hair
ながい	nagai	long
みじかい	mijikai	short (length)
め	me	eye(s)
おおきい	ookii	big
ちいさい	chiisai	small
めがね	megane	glasses
ぼうし	boushi	hat / cap
かっこいい	kakkoii	cool / handsome
かわいい	kawaii	cute
やせている	yasete iru	thin / slim

📋 Expression Reference — Describing People

🗣 Mini Dialogues

A — Flashcards

B — Listen & Choose the Meaning

C — Choose the Right Response

D — Listen & Write in Romaji

E — Shadowing Practice

～は [ADJ] です (Basic Description)

い-adjective て-form (Chaining Descriptions)

～ている for Ongoing States

どんな ひとですか？ (Asking for Descriptions)

～のひと (The Person Who...)

～より (Comparison)

どんなひとですか？ (Asking for Descriptions)