1. Tips to describe buildings & ObjectsX
Tips to describe buildings & Objects
By Mtra. Lina Cruz Ortega
Plan to describe a building
Vocabulary & Phrases
Describing an object
Example: describing an object
Other Aspects to describe
Expressions to recommend

2. PLAN to describe a building
What is the building? (name)
Where is it located? (location)
Who built it and when? (historical facts)
What makes this building interesting?
Give general information about the building you are going to describe

3. PLAN to describe a building
What does the building look like?
(factual information: size, color, materials, age)
What are the important features of this building?
What makes this building special?
What can you do/see there?
What’s the atmosphere of the building?
Describe the building (size, colors, materials, things to do and see)

4. e.g. an unforgettable castle
Bran Castle is one of the most legendary medieval castles in Europe. It is situated high above the forest in the Carpathian mountains in Romania.
Name & location of the building
Bran Castle was built in 1212, and it was where the famous Prince Vlad Tepes once lived. The prince and his majestic home were the inspiration for Bram Stocker’s Dracula.
Historical Facts & importance

5. The Castle has certainly an amazing sight with its breathtaking view over the countryside below. It has tall towers and thick stone walls with small windows. In Medieval times, such windows made the castle easier to defend.
Description of the exterior (factual information: size, materials)
The interior is dark and gloomy. Each room has a huge fireplace and is furnished with simple wooden items. There are no paintings on the wall, and no carpets on the cold stone floors. It looks majestic, but is not designed for comfort.
Description of the interior & things to do/see.

6. IMPORTANT VOCABULARY, PHRASES, EXPRESSIONS & GRAMMAR TO USE:
Include a variety of adjectives:
e.g. cosy (acogedor), decorated (decorado), huge (enorme), luxurious (lujoso), spacious (espacioso), spooky (escalofriante), warm (cálido), ancient (antiguo), attractive (atractivo), beautiful (hermoso), charming (encantador), empty (vacío), historic (histórico), impressive (impresionante), interesting (interesante), isolated (aislado), large (grande), modern (modern), significant (significativo), traditional (tradicional), ugly (feo), unique (único), well-planned (bien planeado), welcoming (acogedor), exciting (emocionante), awesome (increíble), spectacular (espectacular), gloomy (melancólico), towering (imponente), exquisite (exquisito), exclusive (exclusivo), dazzling (deslumbrante), exotic (exótico), deafening (ensordecedor), bustling (bullicioso), crowded (concurrido), busy (ocupado), noticeable (perceptible), outstanding (excepcional).

7. Phrases of location
It is situated / is located at the top of a mountain.
In (the) south / east / west / south-east / north-west / etc. (of)…
On the south / east / west / north / etc. coast of…
In the center / heart / middle of

8. TENSE TO GIVE Factual Information
To give Factual Information you can use the Passive Voice in Present Tense or a Prepositional Phrase.
Madrid is situated in the central point of the Iberian Peninsula with a population of about 3,000, 000.
The palace is surrounded by high walls.
The old house is situated next to …
To the left of the entrance there is a marble statue.

9. TENSE TO GIVE HISTORICAL FACTS
You use Passive Voice in Past Tense to write about historical facts.
This famous temple was built in 800 BC.
The museum was opened in 1939 and it is visited by thousands of people every day.
The monument was erected in It is a memorial to those who died in World War I.

10. Phrases to express impressions
Without doubt, the most impressive thing about San Francisco is the Golden Gate Bridge.
The most fascinating/ interesting part of the city is …
I was immediately struck by the amazing number of huge skyscrapers.
The most noticeable /outstanding feature of the place is its golden dome.
One of the things that will immediately impress you is the architecture of the building.

11. Grammar: Relative pronouns
You can use Relative Pronouns (who, that, which, where) to join sentences.
The castle where the King and Queen used to live, is visited by many tourists.
The local people, who are very friendly, make handmade souvenirs.
The hotels which are in the city center are luxurious.

12. HOW TO DESCRIBE AN OBJECT
When you look at an object, observe it carefully and ask yourself the following questions to describe it as much as possible.
What does it look like?  It is big, tiny, heavy, old, long, rectangular, multi-
colored etc.
What is it made of?  It is made of leather, plastic, nylon, wood, fabric, etc.
What is it used for?  It is used to make a ritual or it is used for killing
animals
Where does it come from?  It comes from Italy, Japan, Africa, etc.
Where was it found or created?  It was made in the prehistoric era, or it
was found in the ocean, etc.

13. Order of adjectives
When you describe an object, you should give an accurate picture of it. Your description should include information about size, weight, shape, pattern or decoration, color, origin and material. Always list opinion adjectives first (e.g. beautiful, inexpensive, unusual, etc.), followed by fact adjectives.
Opinion
Size/
Weight
Age
shape
Pattern/
Decoration
Color
Origin
Material
It’s a
beautiful
large
old
red
wooden
box
It’s a
lovely
heavy
oval
mirror
It’s an
unusual
stripped
Black & white
Japanese
table

14. Grammar: superlative
Use the Superlative to introduce your artifact/attraction and make it more impressive.
The most famous attraction is…
The tallest man in the world was…
The smallest picture in history was taken/made by ….
One of the most unbelievable exhibit you can find is…

15. Example of how to describe an object
There are a lot of unbelievable exhibits you can find in this museum. One of the most spectacular attractions is the world’s largest tire. It was made by Goodyear Tire & Rubber and it is used for visitors to take photographs on top of it. This impressive heavy black tire is 3.65 meters tall and weighs almost 3000 kilos. It costs approximately 20,000 dollars and contains enough rubber to make 395 normal sizes tires.
Another amazing artifact is…

16. Other aspects to describe
If you describe function or purpose you can use a gerund or an infinitive:
A drum is used for making music. (gerund)
A drum is used to make music. (infinitive)
If you describe components or parts, you can use one of the following expressions:
A hammer consists of a handle and a head.
is made up of
is composed of

17. Other aspects to describe
If you are going to describe materials, you can use these phrases.
A chair is made of wood. (material)
Bread is made from wheat. (source)
This kind of material is made by a big firm in Japan. (company)
If you are going to describe shape or figure, you can write it as follows:
A coin is shaped like a circle.
A coin is circular in shape.

18. Other aspects to describe
If you want to express dimensions, do it as follows.
This building is 250 meters high.
The building has a height of 250 meters.
The height of this building is 250 meters.
The building is 250 meters in height.

19. Other aspects to describe
If you want to express property, use the verb to be + an adjective.
The interior of a ping-pong ball is hollow.
The book is thick.
The glass bottle is fragile.
The edge of a table is straight.
The sides of a car are flat.
The middle of a bottle is curved.

20. Expressions to make recommendations
You can’t miss it.
My personal recommendation would be …
It is worth visiting this place because…
If I were you, I would come.
I would strongly suggest/advise that…
Why don’t you visit this marvelous place?
You definitely should come and see…
How about visiting this place on weekend?
It is truly worth seeing this...
You won’t regret if you visit this place.

21. Example of a recommendation
Well, you can't miss the British Museum then. It's one of the best museums in the world for human history.