STORY VOCABULARY

Verbs/ Action Words

Smashed, crashed, splattered, shattered, scattered, splashed,
raced, tilted, flickered, flashed, tapped, slid, ran, leapt, jumped,
darted, raced, paced, stepped, travelled, shifted, crawled, crept,
wove, dashed, pounced OR edged closer, stepped nearer, moved
worriedly, walked softly, crept towards
Looking Peered, looked, glanced, studied, examined, picked up,
studied, inspected, saw, imagined

Facial Expressions/ Reactions

blinked, stared, gawped, stood amazed, stopped dead, mouth fell
open OR smiled, grinned, laughed, tried not to laugh OR blushed,
went pink, stammered, stepped back, hands shaking, shuddering,
shivering, heart beat faster, pulse raced, heart beat in her ears,
stomach tied tight

Adjectives SIZE
Small, tiny, diminutive, neat, dainty OPPOSITE large, huge,
gigantic, vast, limitless, endless

Weather
Snowy, brilliant, gleaming, shining, sparkling OPPOSITE dark, dull,
cloudy, grim, bleak OR wet, glistening, gleaming, shining, misty,
foggy, blurred, stormy, dark, bruised clouds, rain lashed down,
sheets of rain, golden sunlight OR dusty, bare, dry earth, barren
(nothing will grow), featureless

Appearance
Upright, straight, stiff OPPOSITE bent, wobbly, shaky, flowing OR
weak-looking, feeble, delicate, slim OPPOSITE strong, muscular,
thick-set, heavy, powerful OR striped, patterned, floral, flowerpattern, dark, light, shadowy Feelings comfortable, soft, gentle,
inviting, welcoming OPPOSITE harsh, hard, unkind, brutal, violent,
desperate, vicious, cruel, uncaring, heartless Personality fussy,
precise, careful, choosy OR messy, disheveled

Texture
smooth, glassy, glossy OPPOSITE abrasive, rough, like sandpaper,
like bark OR bumpy, rippled, curved OR metallic, wooden, soft as
silk (or petals), waxy, like cobweb, like lace, grassy

Sounds
shrill, screeching, sharp, fierce, shrieking, high-pitched, piercing,
whistling OR low, soft, melodious (musical), mellow, murmuring,
whispering, muted (quiet) OR booming, echoing, thrilling, tingling
OR crashed, banged, crackled, crunched, creaked, battered,
hammered, pounded, beat, thudded, thumped, boomed

Smells
musty, pungent (strong smelling), sour, stale OR sweet, s
spicy, warm, fresh, delicate, perfumed, suffocating

Tastes
bitter, sweet, rich, dark, buttery, sour, dry, sharp, delicate,
delicious OR vile, foul

Colours
peach, coral (orange pink), pink, fuchsia (hot pink), ruby, magenta
(deep hot pink), crimson (pinkish red), blood-red, red, burgundy
(dull purple red), maroon (bright purple red), purple, violet, indigo
(purplish blue), navy, deep blue, cobalt (bright dark blue), lapis
lazuli (also a jewel), cornflower (sky blue), turquoise (blue green),
teal (dark green-blue), bottle green (deep green), verdant (like
grass), emerald, lime (green-yellow), yellow, gold, silver, platinum
(brightest silver), blonde, honey-blonde, strawberry blonde,
copper (rust/pale orange), russet (dark red brown), auburn (very
dark red hair), brown, tan, mahogany, ebony (darkest brown,
almost black), steel, lead-coloured. You can also compound similar
colours: blue-green, emerald turquoise. Or pinkish, reddish, etc

Adverbs SPEED

slowly, sluggishly OPPOSITE briskly, quickly, abruptly, suddenly

MANNER clumsily, violently, forcefully, vigorously, rudely,
furiously OPPOSITE softly, gently, delicately, meekly, humbly OR
eagerly, excitedly.

What is Sensory Language?

Sensory language is a great way to 'add more detail' and 'be more
specific' in your writing.
The examples below are meant for creative writing (stories) but
also work well in persuasive writing too, when you want to create
a vivid (life-like) word picture.

SIGHTS:
colour,
(hot or cool, clashing, bright, neon, dark, light, pale)
shape, zoom in on interesting details, e.g. fingerprints in dust,
eyeliner smudged as if shed been crying, hands shaking

SOUNDS:
some effective techniques are:

onomatopoeia: crashed, banged, crackled

similes: a voice like a rusty gate, girls shrieked like monkeys
fighting over the last banana

personification: wind sang a dismal tune

SMELLS:
Use adjectives like: musty, damp, stuffy, sweet, sickly, spicy,
perfumed, suffocating
Use verbs like: wafted, filled the air

TEXTURES:
sticky, smooth, rough, soft, hard, silky, fluffy, fuzzy, starchy, crisp,
corrugated, rippled, abrasive, cracked, etc
Similes: rough as sandpaper, soft as a jellyfish, moist as a tongue

TASTES:
Use vivid descriptive vocabulary to evoke flavours:
e.g. bitter, sweet, rich, dark, buttery, tasted like plastic (wet
cardboard, a sponge) etc.

Complex Sentences: Different Ways to

Start, Creative Writing IGCSE
Coursework and Controlled Assessment
Place
e.g. Among the trees, amber light glittered, softly.
Beneath the ice, pike lurked.
Inside the room was nothing but dust.
Outside the town, dull sweeps of green spread into the distance.

Time
e.g. After that, he fell silent.
When she left the room, no one said a word.
Then there was silence.
Six months later, he found a paper cup touched with lipstick,
crumpled in the bottom of his bag.
For four years, they sank slowly into despair.

Adverb
e.g. Coldly, she turned towards him.
Slowly, and with trembling fingers, he took it from the shelf.
Awkwardly, she turned towards him.
Together, they went through the door.
Alone, she watched through the window as the car drove away.
Nervously, she turned the handle.

Six times, he went to the cupboard, each time forgetting what it

was he had gone for.
Once, he had loved her.
Now, nothing remained but half a cupcake with the icing licked
off.

-ing
e.g. Sobbing quietly, he put his hands to her throat.
Pounding, smashing through the undergrowth, he heard them
coming faster.

Subjunctive (Conditional)
e.g. If she had walked through the door a moment later, she
would have died.
If he could just reach the ledge, he might be able to pull himself
up.

Mood
e.g. Angry, she turned towards him.
Happy, they looked at the child, then back at each other.
Furious, he twisted the lid off.