To describe means to say or write what something or someone is like, giving details about their appearance, qualities, or nature. In geometry, it also means to draw or trace a shape (e.g. describe a circle).
What Does Describe Mean?
Describe comes from the Latin describere — a compound of de- (down, fully) and scribere (to write). The original sense was literally "to write down or copy out". It entered English in the early 15th century via Old French and quickly broadened to cover any act of representing something in words. The same Latin root scribere gives English script, scribe, inscription, prescribe, and manuscript.
In modern everyday English, describe is the go-to verb whenever you need to give someone a verbal picture of a person, place, object, event, or feeling. It is essential vocabulary for exams such as IELTS and Cambridge, where candidates are regularly asked to describe images, graphs, processes, and personal experiences.
Note that describe also has a specialist sense in mathematics and physics: a moving point can describe a curve, and a compass can describe a circle. This sense is rare outside formal scientific writing but worth knowing at C1 level and above.
Example Sentences
| Sentence | Level & usage note |
|---|---|
| Can you describe your house? | A2 — simple question form; object follows directly |
| She was asked to describe her daily routine in the writing exam. | B1 — passive construction; typical exam context |
| The doctor asked him to describe the pain as precisely as possible. | B1 — describe + object + adverbial; medical context |
| The report describes how global temperatures have risen over the past century. | B2 — describe + how-clause; formal/academic register |
| It is difficult to describe the sense of isolation one experiences in a completely silent room. | C1 — complex noun phrase as object; abstract, reflective tone |
Collocations
| Collocation | Example |
|---|---|
| describe in detail | Please describe the incident in detail. |
| describe briefly | Can you describe briefly what happened? |
| describe accurately | It is hard to describe the colour accurately. |
| describe vividly | She described the scene so vividly I felt I was there. |
| describe as | He described himself as a lifelong learner. |
| describe symptoms | The nurse asked her to describe her symptoms. |
| describe a process | The diagram helps students describe a process step by step. |
| describe feelings | Writing in a journal can help you describe your feelings clearly. |
| best described as | The flavour is best described as mildly sweet and nutty. |
| hard/difficult to describe | The beauty of the landscape was almost impossible to describe. |
Usage Notes
Key patterns for describe
- describe + object (most common): She described the house.
- describe + object + as + noun/adjective: He described the trip as exhausting but rewarding.
- describe + how/what/where-clause: She described what she had seen.
- be described as (passive): The suspect was described as tall with dark hair.
- hard/difficult/impossible to describe: common phrase to express that words are inadequate.
Describe does not take a preposition before its object. Never say describe about or describe of.
Common Mistakes
Watch Out For
Please describe about your hometown.
Please describe your hometown. (no preposition after describe)
She described to me the situation in a very confusing way.
She described the situation to me in a very confusing way. (object comes before the indirect object phrase)
He described very well the scene.
He described the scene very well. (adverb follows the object, not split between verb and object)