Why Moods?

A blog follower recently asked me to create a list of words to describe characters’ moods.

mood: a short-term state of mind or feeling

When you’re writing an action scene or when word count is limited, one of the following adjectives might be just what you need.

Before you continue to the list, however, consider this: Describing a person’s mood with an adjective breaks the show-don’t-tell rule. If you have the room to do so, consider substituting descriptive phrasing with emotion beats and physical manifestations. A good body language dictionary will provide the tools. (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)

Many of the adjectives in this post could also refer to a character’s personality.

Adjectives with Positive Connotations

A to C
accepting, affable, affectionate, agreeable, altruistic, amenable, amiable, amused, animated, appreciative, approachable, attentive, benevolent, blissful, blithe, bouncy, brave, breezy, bright, bubbly, buoyant, calm, cheerful, chipper, chummy, companionable, compassionate, compliant, composed, conciliatory, confident, congenial, considerate, content, convivial, cordial, courteous

D to G
dauntless, delightful, determined, dignified, diplomatic, eager, easygoing, ebullient, ecstatic, effervescent, elated, electrified, elevated, empathetic, empowered, energetic, energized, enthusiastic, euphoric, excited, exhilarated, exuberant, fearless, festive, forgiving, forthright, friendly, frisky, fulfilled, generous, genial, giddy, glad, good-natured, grateful, gregarious, gutsy

H to L
happy, holiday, honest, hopeful, hospitable, humble, humorous, idyllic, imaginative, imperturbable, impressed, indomitable, inspired, interested, intrepid, jaunty, jocund, jolly, jovial, joyful, jubilant, justified, kind, laidback, levelheaded, liberated, lighthearted, lively, longsuffering, loving

M to R
magnanimous, mellow, merry, neighborly, optimistic, overjoyed, passive, patient, peaceable, peaceful, peppy, perky, placid, playful, pleasant, pleased, plucky, polite, positive, receptive, refreshed, relaxed, relieved, resolute, respectful, responsive, rested, reverent, reverential, revitalized, romantic

S to W
sanguine, satisfied, sedate, self-effacing, selfless, sensible, sharing, sociable, solicitous, sparky, spirited, splendid, sprightly, spunky, steadfast, sunny, supportive, sympathetic, tender, thankful, thoughtful, thrilled, tolerant, touched, tranquil, unassuming, understanding, unflappable, unruffled, unselfish, unshakeable, unshaken, upbeat, uplifted, vibrant, vivacious, warm

Adjectives with Ambiguous Connotations

A to N
amazed, amorous, analytical, astonished, awed, blunt, candid, changeable, chatty, contemplative, curious, dispassionate, dreamy, expectant, fierce, flirtatious, impassive, impulsive, indifferent, inquisitive, lovesick, mischievous, mysterious, naughty, neutral, nostalgic

P to Z
passionate, pensive, philosophical, powerful, prayerful, proud, purposeful, rambunctious, rational, reflective, remorseful, sensitive, sentimental, serene, serious, shy, sorry, subdued, submissive, surprised, talkative, whimsical, wistful, zealous

Adjectives with Negative Connotations

A and B
abandoned, abashed, afraid, aggressive, alienated, aloof, angry, annoyed, anxious, apathetic, apprehensive, argumentative, arrogant, ashamed, baffled, belligerent, bewildered, bitter, bizarre, black, blue, boisterous, bored, bossy, brooding, brutish, bullish

C
callous, cantankerous, capricious, close-mouthed, cold, combative, complacent, concessionary, confined, confrontational, confused, contentious, contradictory, contrary, cranky, critical, crushed, crusty, cynical

D
dangerous, dark, defiant, dejected, depressed, desolate, desperate, despondent, detached, devastated, disappointed, disbelieving, disconcerted, discontented, disdainful, disillusioned, dismayed, distant, distressed, disturbed, domineering, drained, dreary

E to H
edgy, embarrassed, empty, enervated, enraged, envious, erratic, exasperated, exhausted, expansive, fearful, fickle, flippant, forlorn, foul, frightened, frustrated, furious, gloomy, grim, grouchy, grumpy, guilty, haughty, haunted, heartbroken, heavy, helpless, hesitant, hopeless, hostile, humiliated, hurt, hypercritical

I to N
ignored, imperious, implacable, important, inadequate, incendiary, indifferent, indolent, inferior, inflammatory, infuriated, insecure, insignificant, insubordinate, intimidated, irascible, irreverent, irritable, irritated, isolated, jealous, judgmental, lethargic, lonely, mad, malicious, melancholy, mercurial, morose, nauseated, nervous, nightmarish

O to R
offensive, ominous, ornery, overbearing, overpowered, overwhelmed, pained, perplexed, pessimistic, powerless, presumptuous, provocative, puzzled, quixotic, rebellious, rejected, reluctant, resentful, restless, rigid, riotous, rowdy

S and T
sad, sarcastic, scared, self-important, selfish, shocked, skeptical, smug, solemn, somber, sour, stressed, stubborn, surly, suspicious, taciturn, tense, tepid, terrified, terror-stricken, threatened, troubled, turbulent

U to W
ugly, uncaring, uncertain, uncomfortable, uneasy, ungrateful, unpleasant, unpredictable, unruly, unsettled, unyielding, uppity, vengeful, vile, violent, volatile, vulnerable, wary, weary, wild, withdrawn, worried, wretched

A Storyline Often Alters the Connotation

Positive: The prisoners’ compliant mood during the lockdown impressed the warden so much that he granted them special privileges.

Better version: The prisoners’ compliance during the lockdown impressed the warden so much that he granted them [name the special privileges].

Negative: Her boyfriend’s compliant mood whenever he was around his ex-wife irritated Tina so much that she ended their relationship.

Better version: Her boyfriend’s compliance whenever he was around his ex-wife infuriated Tina so much that she [mention something specific].

Positive: The billionaire’s frequent magnanimous moods were well-known and appreciated by the thousands of people he helped.

Better version: The billionaire’s frequent magnanimity was well-known and appreciated by the thousands of people he [provide examples].

Negative: The billionaire’s frequent magnanimous moods were disliked by his family. At the rate he was donating money to charitable organizations, he would leave his greedy relatives penniless.

Better version: The billionaire’s incessant magnanimity was detested by his family. At the rate he was leaching money to charitable organizations, his altruism would leave his greedy relatives destitute.

Positive: The CEO’s taciturn mood during bargaining sessions allowed her to maintain her poker face even when she disagreed with union demands.

Better version: The CEO’s taciturnity during bargaining sessions allowed her to maintain her poker face even when she disagreed with union demands.

Negative: The CEO’s taciturn mood during bargaining sessions irritated the union. How could they negotiate when she refused to show her hand?

Better version: The CEO’s taciturnity during bargaining sessions exasperated the union. How could they negotiate when she refused to show her hand?

Note the Edits that Remove Mood

In each instance, a noun takes over the heavy lifting and reduces word count, which is invaluable in action scenes.

Rather than seeing mood in passages that refer to a character’s frame of mind, you’ll usually find phrasing like the following.

The prisoners were compliant.

The billionaire was magnanimous.

The CEO was tolerant.

Provide Context

Ambiguity, unless deliberately introduced to further a plot, should be eliminated from your writing.

If a character’s romantic actions are meant to be negative, show us:

A dozen roses every day, multiple texts per hour, lovey-dovey notes he slipped into her briefcase … Romantic? Bollocks! This was stalking, and she intended to end it.

If a character’s zeal is a liability, confirm it with details:

Working overtime shifts, fetching the manager’s coffee, washing his car. Yeah, she was zealous, all right, but it didn’t earn any kudos from her coworkers.

What’s Your Favorite Mood Word?