List of Descriptive Words and Phrases For Book Reviews
Check similar post: List of Adjectives That Describe a Book or Magazine
Negative Vocabulary Word List for Book Reviews (This List will be updated with definition soon)
a bore
uninteresting or tedious talk or dull.
arrogant
having or revealing an exaggerated sense of one’s own importance or abilities.
average
having qualities that are seen as typical of a particular person or thing.
banal
so lacking in originality as to be obvious and boring.
blasé
unimpressed or indifferent to something because one has experienced or seen it so often before.
blather
talk long-windedly without making very much sense.
boring
not interesting; tedious.
catastrophe
the denouement of a drama, especially a classical tragedy.
childish
silly and immature.
cliché
a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.
common
occurring, found, or done often; prevalent. not rare.
commonplace
a book into which notable extracts from other works are copied for personal use.
conceited
excessively proud of oneself; abilities, appearance, etc.; vain and egotistical.
confusing
bewildering or perplexing. make (something) more complex or less easy to understand.
contrived
created or arranged in a way that seems artificial and unrealistic.
copied
make a similar or identical version of; reproduce.
crude
simple and not skillfully done or made. (of figures) not adjusted or corrected.
dated
old-fashioned.
depressing
causing or resulting in a feeling of miserable dejection.
disappointing
failing to fulfill someone’s hopes or expectations.
disjointed
lacking a coherent sequence or connection.
dissatisfying
fail to satisfy (someone).
distracting
preventing concentration or diverting attention; disturbing.
drab
lacking brightness or interest; drearily dull.
dreadful
causing or involving great suffering, fear, or unhappiness; extremely bad or serious.
drivel
silly nonsense.
dry
bare or lacking adornment. / forget one’s lines.
dull
lacking interest or excitement.
empty
lacking meaning or sincerity. / having no value or purpose.
ennui-inspiring
ennui: a feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction: boredom.
esoteric
intended for or likely to be understood by only a small number of people with a specialized knowledge or interest. obscure, cryptic, mysterious
needs editing
A copy editor has the expertise needed to find and correct errors in spelling, grammar, continuity, flow, and punctuation.
obnoxious
extremely unpleasant.
obvious
easily perceived or understood; clear, self-evident, or apparent.
offensive
actively aggressive; attacking.
one-dimensional characters
The term one-dimensional character in a book review or story refers to a character who lacks depth and who never seems to learn or grow. When a character is one-dimensional, he or she does not demonstrate a sense of learning in the course of a story. (thoughtco)
overly-complicated
overly difficult to understand or explain
overrated
have a higher opinion of (someone or something) than is deserved.
paper-thin plot
insubstantial / lacking strength and solidity.
pedestrian
lacking inspiration or excitement; dull.
poorly-conceived
poorly-executed
not done correctly from a technical point of view.
poorly-written
predictable
pretentious
rambling
raw
redundant
self-absorbed
senseless
sentimentalized
silly
skeletal development
slanted
slow
slow-going
so-so
sophomoric
stereotype
stereotyped
sterile
stiff
failure
forced
formulaic
frantic
frustrating
gimmicky
grating
holes in the plot
hollow
horrible
implausible
in poor taste
inconsistent
inexperienced
innocuous
insincere
intimidating
irrelevant
irritating
juvenile
lacking
lacking literary merit
lacking talent
lackluster
lifeless
little character development
meaningless
mechanical
mediocre
misinformed
misunderstood
stock plot
superficial
tasteless
taxing
tedious
tiresome
too long
tragic
transparent
trash
trivial
unaffecting
unapproachable
unconvincing
underwhelming
uneven
unimaginative
unimportant
uninspired
unintelligent
uninteresting
unoriginal
unpracticed
unreadable
unrefined
unresolved
unsatisfactory
unsatisfying
untalented
vacuous
void
Words used to describe writing or speech style provided by Macmillan Dictionary.
articulate
adjective
able to express your thoughts, arguments, and ideas clearly and effectively
articulate
adjective
articulate writing or speech is clear and easy to understand
be couched in something
to be expressed a particular way
chatty
adjective
a chatty writing style is friendly and informal
circuitous
adjective
taking a long time to say what you really mean when you are talking or writingabout something
clean
adjective
clean language or humour does not offend people, especially because it doesnot involve sex
compendious
adjective
formal short but containing all that is necessary
conversational
adjective
a conversational style of writing or speaking is informal, like a privateconversation
crisp
adjective
crisp speech or writing is clear and effective
declamatory
adjective
formal expressing feelings or opinions with great force
diffuse
adjective
formal using too many words and not easy to understand
discursive
adjective
including information that is not relevant to the main subject
economical
adjective
an economical way of speaking or writing does not use more words than are necessary
elliptical
adjective
suggesting what you mean rather than saying or writing it clearly
eloquent
adjective
expressing what you mean using clear and effective language
emphatic
adjective
making your meaning very clear because you have very strong feelings about a situation or subject
emphatically
adverb
very firmly and clearly
epigrammatic
adjective
expressing something such as a feeling or idea in a short and clever or funnyway
epistolary
adjective
literary relating to the writing of letters
euphemistic
adjective
euphemistic expressions are used for talking about unpleasant or embarrassing subjects without mentioning the things themselves
flowery
adjective
flowery language or writing uses many complicated words that are intended to make it more attractive
fluent
adjective
expressing yourself in a clear and confident way, without seeming to make an effort
formal
adjective
correct or conservative in style, and suitable for official or serious situations or occasions
formally
adverb
in a correct or conservative style or manner that is suitable for official or serious situations or occasions
gossipy
adjective
a gossipy letter is lively and full of news about the writer of the letter and about other people
grandiloquent
adjective
formal expressed in extremely formal language in order to impress people, and often sounding silly because of this
have something/a lot/nothing etc to say for yourself
to be fairly/very/not at all keen to talk, especially about yourself and your reasons for doing something
idiomatic
adjective
expressing things in a way that sounds natural
in
adjective
using a particular type or style of writing
inarticulate
adjective
not able to express clearly what you want to say
inarticulate
adjective
not spoken or pronounced clearly
incoherent
adjective
unable to express yourself clearly
informal
adjective
used about language or behaviour that is suitable for using with friends but not in formal situations
journalistic
adjective
similar in style to journalism
learned
adjective
a learned piece of writing shows great knowledge about a subject, especiallyan academic subject
literary
adjective
involving books or the activity of writing, reading, or studying books
literary
adjective
relating to the kind of words that are used only in stories or poems, and not in normal writing or speech
lyric
adjective
using words to express feelings in the way that a song would
lyrical
adjective
having the qualities of music
ornate
adjective
using unusual words and complicated sentences
orotund
adjective
very formal containing extremely formal and complicated language intendedto impress people
parenthetical
adjective
not directly connected with what you are saying or writing
pejorative
adjective
formal a pejorative word, phrase etc expresses criticism or a bad opinion of someone or something
picturesque
adjective
picturesque language is unusual and interesting
pithy
adjective
a pithy statement or piece of writing is short and very effective
poetic
adjective
expressing ideas in a very sensitive way and with great beauty or imagination
polemical
adjective
formal using or supported by strong arguments
ponderous
adjective
mainly literary ponderous writing or speech is serious and boring
portentous
adjective
formal trying to seem very serious and important, in order to impress people
prolix
adjective
very formal using too many words and therefore boring
punchy
adjective
a punchy piece of writing such as a speech, report, or slogan is one that has a strong effect because it uses clear simple language and not many words
rambling
adjective
a rambling speech or piece of writing is long and confusing
readable
adjective
writing that is readable is clear and able to be read
rhetorical
adjective
relating to a style of speaking or writing that is effective or intended to influence people
rhetorical
adjective
written or spoken in a way that is impressive but is not honest
rhetorically
adverb
in a way that expects or wants no answer
rhetorically
adverb
using or relating to rhetoric
rough
adjective
a rough drawing or piece of writing is not completely finished
roundly
adverb
in a strong and clear way
sententious
adjectiv
eformal expressing opinions about right and wrong behaviour in a way that is intended to impress people
sesquipedalian
adjective
very formal using a lot of long words that most people do not understand
Shakespearean
adjective
using words in the way that is typical of Shakespeare’s writing
slangy
adjective
informal containing or using a lot of slang
stylistic
adjective
relating to ways of creating effects, especially in language and literature
succinct
adjective
expressed in a very short but clear way
turgid
adjective
using language in a way that is complicated and difficult to understand
unprintable
adjective
used for describing writing or words that you think are offensive
vague
adjective
someone who is vague does not clearly or fully explain something
vaguely
adverb
in a way that is not clear
verbose
adjective
formal using more words than necessary, and therefore long and boring
well-turned
adjective
a well-turned phrase is one that is expressed well
with (your) tongue in (your) cheek
if you write or say something with tongue in cheek, you intend it to be humorous and do not mean it seriously
worded
adjective
expressed in a particular way
wordy
adjective
using more words than are necessary, especially long or formal words