Have you ever wanted to describe someone’s appearance in Japanese, like saying “She has big eyes” or “He has short hair”? In Japanese, there’s a really natural and common way to do this using body parts and the particle が!

Let’s break it down so you can start describing people like a native.

🌟 The Basic Pattern

In Japanese, we don’t say “She has big eyes.” Instead, we describe the feature itself with:

【Body part】が + 【adjective】です。
→ The body part is (adjective).

Examples:

• 目めが大おおきいです。
  Me ga ookii desu.
  (She/He has big eyes. / The eyes are big.)
  
• 髪かみが長ながいです。
  Kami ga nagai desu.
  (She/He has long hair.)
  
• 足あしが細ほそいです。
  Ashi ga hosoi desu.
  (The legs are slim.)

📝 Note: We’re focusing on the feature, not the person directly. It’s like saying “The eyes are big” instead of “She has big eyes.”

🗣 Adding the Person

If you want to say “That person has ~”, just add the person first:

【Person】は【body part】が + 【adjective】です。

Examples:

• あの人ひとは目めが大おおきいです。
  Ano hito wa me ga ookii desu.
  (That person has big eyes.)
  
• 彼かれは髪かみが短みじかいです。
  Kare wa kami ga mijikai desu.
  (He has short hair.)
  
• 友ともだちは足あしが長ながいです。
  Tomodachi wa ashi ga nagai desu.
  (My friend has long legs.)

💡 Useful Vocabulary

Body Parts

• 目（め） – me – eyes
• 髪（かみ） – kami – hair
• 顔（かお） – kao – face
• 鼻（はな） – hana – nose
• 口（くち） – kuchi – mouth
• 耳（みみ） – mimi – ears
• 背（せ） – se – height/back
• 足（あし） – ashi – legs/feet
• 手（て） – te – hands

Adjectives

• 大きい (おおきい) – ookii – big
• 小さい (ちいさい) – chiisai – small
• 長い (ながい) – nagai – long
• 短い (みじかい) – mijikai – short (length)
• 高い (たかい) – takai – tall/high
• 低い (ひくい) – hikui – short/low
• 太い (ふくい) – futoi – thick
• 細い (ほそい) – hosoi – slim/thin

👀 Describing Someone Naturally

To describe multiple features about someone, you can connect adjectives using the て-form.

Here’s how:

• For い-adjectives: Replace the final い with くて.
  Example: 大きい → 大きくて
  
• For な-adjectives: Add で after the adjective.
  Example: しずか（な）→ しずかで

This lets you say things like:

You can even combine multiple features:

• 彼女かのじょは目めが大おおきくて、髪かみが長ながいです。
  Kanojo wa me ga ookikute, kami ga nagai desu.
  (She has big eyes and long hair.)
  
• 彼かれは背せが高たかくて、足あしが長ながいです。
  Kare wa se ga takakute, ashi ga nagai desu.
  (He is tall and has long legs.)
  
• あの人ひとは顔かおが小ちいさくて、耳みみがかわいいです。
  Ano hito wa kao ga chiisakute, mimi ga kawaii desu.
  (That person has a small face and cute ears.)
  
• 友ともだちは髪かみが黒くろくて、目めがきれいです。
  Tomodachi wa kami ga kurokute, me ga kirei desu.
  (My friend has black hair and beautiful eyes.)

Try practicing with your friends or even describing your favorite celebrities in Japanese!

🗣 Practice Time!

Let’s put your skills to the test! Try translating the following English sentences into Japanese using the patterns we learned:

1. She has small eyes and a cute nose.
2. That person has long legs and short hair.
3. My friend has big eyes and a beautiful face.
4. He is tall and has a loud voice. (Hint: “loud voice” = 声が大きい)

Challenge: Describe your favorite celebrity’s appearance in Japanese using at least two features!

5. She has short hair and small ears.
6. He has a tall height and big hands.
7. That girl has pretty eyes and long black hair.
8. My teacher has a kind face and a quiet voice. (Hint: “quiet voice” = 声が小さい)

Comment your answers below or share them with your language partner!
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