Character Description – 300 Words to Describe a Nose

300 Words to Describe a Nose

Words to describe a nose – why on earth would you want a word to describe a nose?

Characters are arguably the most important element in any story. Because of this importance, you’d better get them right and keep them right. When creating characters, one thing often neglected is minor facial detail – in particular the nose. Yet a nose is quite a distinguishing feature. A well described nose can set your characters apart.

Dare to be different – give your character a distinctive nose. Don’t use the same old clichéd descriptions that everyone else uses, don’t make your character’s nose ‘aquiline’ or ‘petite’, make your character’s nose unique; help your character spring to life.

Words to Describe a Character’s Nose.

To describe a character’s nose, to describe their faces, their quirky behaviour …. Who’d be an author? Writing sometimes drives authors batty. We’re confident we have the tale of a lifetime if only we can tell it the way it is. We know what we want to say, yet that path from head to paper can sometimes really bug us.

The problem is, without characters there is no story. If a narrative is simply one action after another, it becomes boring. We have to create characters that readers equate and empathize with. Readers need to love the characters, to hate them, to be on the edge of their seats waiting to see what happens next – but to achieve this we need respectable character descriptions and effective characterization.

How do we describe a nose?

You should never overdo it when trying to describe a nose. Be cursory. If you use extravagant descriptions it will kill the reader’s interest. By and large it’s better to describe a nose briefly, and leave the rest to the ingenuity of the reader. All you need do is to provide a clear but distinguishing morsel of description of the nose and let the reader fill in the rest.

One of the tribulations of being a writer is that we can become so entangled with our actual narrative that our mental stash of words becomes blinded. To live to tell the tale, I’ve assembled a list of preferred words to describe a nose.

List of Words to Describe a Nose

•  Abhorrent; Abstruse; All-encompassing; Alluring; Ample; Angular; Appealing; Aquiline; Arranged; Attractive; Austere; 
• Ballooned; Barbed; Basic; Beak; Beaky; Bedraggled; Bent; Big; Blatant; Bloated; Bluff; Blunt; Bold; Bony; Bounteous; Bowed; Broad; Brusque; Brutal; Bulbous; Bulging; Bulky; Button; Button-like; 
• Callous; Candid; Canny; Chaotic; Characteristic; Charming; Chic; Chubby; Clever; Cluttered; Commonplace; Compact; Compacted; Compressed; Condensed; Conk; Conservative; Considerable; Conspicuous; Conventional; Cool; Corpulent; Cruel; Curled; Curved; 
•  Dapper; Dashing; Debonair; Defined; Definite; Deft; Dense; Diminutive; Disagreeable; Disgusting; Dishevelled; Disorderly; Disrespectful; Distended; Distinct; Distinctive; Distinguishing; Doubtful; Dreadful; Dull;
•  Eagle-like; Efficient; Elaborate; Elegant; Emphatic; Engaging; Engorged; Enormous; Erect; Ethical; Everyday; Expansive; 
• Fair; Famous; Fascinating; Fashionable; Fat; Flagrant; Flamboyant; Flat; Flowing; Fluid; Forbidding; Forthright; Foul; Frank; 
• Gallant; Gaunt; Gawky; Generous; Genuine; Glamorous; Glaring; Glitzy; Globular; Gooey; Graceful; Graceful; Gross; Gruesome; 
• Handsome; Hard; Harsh; Hatchet-like; Heavy; Hideous; High-up; Homely; Honest; Hooked; Hooter; Huge; 
• Idiosyncratic; Immaculate; Impertinent; Important; Incomprehensible; Indeterminate; Indistinct; Individual; Inexact; Inflamed; Inflated; Inflexible; Insignificant; Insolent; Intelligent; Interesting; 
• Jagged; Jaunty; Jumbled;
• Keen; 
• Large; Large; Level; Liberal; Liberal; Likable; Liquid; Little; 
• Major; Malicious; Marked; Mean; Merciless; Messy; Methodical; Miniature; Minor; Minute; Muddled; Mushroomed; Mushy;
• Nasty; Natural; Nauseating; Neat; No-nonsense; Normal; Noticeable; Notorious; Obscure; Obvious; Orderly; Ordinary; Orthodox; Outsized; Outstanding; 
• Painful; Painstaking; Palpable; Perpendicular; Petite; Pitiless; Plain; Plain-featured; Pleasing; Pliable; Plump; Pocket-sized; Pointed; Pointy; Practiced; Pretty; Prickly; Proboscis; Projecting; Prominent; Pronounced; Protruding; Protuberant; Puffy; Pulpy; Pure; 
• Quadrangular; 
• Ragged; Raw-boned; Rectangular; Renowned; Repellent; Repugnant; Repulsive; Resolute; Respectable; Revolting; Ritzy; Round; Rounded; Rude; Rumpled; Running; Runny; Ruthless; 
• Scant; Schnozzle; Scruffy; Shabby; Sharp; Shocking; Significant; Simple; Sinuous; Sinus; Sizable; Sketchy; Skinny; Slight; Smart; Smooth; Snide; Snout; Soft; Solid; Spacious; Spherical; Spiky; Spiteful; Square; Squashed; Squashy; Squeezed; Stark; Stomach-turning; Straight; Straightforward; Striking; Strong; Stylish; Subtle; Supple; Swanky; Swollen; 
• Taunting; Tempting; Thick; Thin; Tidy; Tiny; Traditional; Trendy; Trifling; Trim; Trivial; Turned up; Typical; 
• Ugly; Unadorned; Unappealing; Unappetizing; Unattractive; Uncertain; Unclear; Uncompromising; Unconventional; Undersized; Unimportant; Uninviting; Unique; Unkempt; Unkind; Unlikable; Unmistakable; Unpleasant; Unquestionable; Unsightly; Unstable; Untidy; Urbane; 
• Vague; Vertical; Vicious; Vile; Vindictive; Visible; 
• Warped; Watery; Well-defined; Well-known; Well-ordered

 By using this list of words to describe a nose, and perhaps combining a few together, you might produce a character that is unique – but be succinct. Never go over the top.

Make your work cursory; be brief, get noticed.