Feelings and Emotions

Hook

“Are you OK? You look tired.” How do you feel today: happy, tired, worried? Feelings words help you explain yourself, and notice how other people are, which makes you a much better conversation partner.

Notice

  • I feel happy today.
  • She looks tired.
  • Why are you sad?
  • He’s nervous about the test.
  • I’m bored. There’s nothing to do!
  • A: Are you OK? — B: Yes, I’m fine. I’m just hungry.

Which verbs come before the feelings words?

Rule

Good feelingsBad feelingsBody feelings
happy · excited · relaxed · proud · surprisedsad · angry · worried · scared / afraid · nervous · bored · lonelytired · hungry · thirsty · hot · cold · sick / ill
  • be / feel + feeling: I’m happy. I feel tired.
  • look / seem + feeling (how someone appears): You look worried. She seems excited.
  • Why? — I’m nervous because I have an exam.
  • Asking: How are you? · How do you feel? · Are you OK? · What’s wrong?
  • bored (how you feel) ≠ boring (the thing): The film is boring, so I’m bored.

Watch Out

  • ✗ I am boring. → ✓ I am bored. (boring = the thing)
  • ✗ She looks like tired. → ✓ She looks tired. (look + adjective)
  • ✗ I have hungry. → ✓ I am hungry.
  • ✗ I feel myself sad. → ✓ I feel sad.

Practice

  1. Complete: I ___ (feel) very tired today.
  2. Complete: She ___ (look) worried.
  3. You got a great present. You feel ___.
  4. You have a big test tomorrow. You feel ___.
  5. Ask how someone feels.
  6. bored or boring? “This lesson isn’t ___!”
  7. You want a drink. You are ___.
  8. Join with because: “I’m happy. It’s my birthday.”
Show the answers
  1. feel
  2. looks
  3. happy / excited
  4. nervous / worried
  5. How do you feel? / Are you OK?
  6. boring
  7. thirsty
  8. I’m happy because it’s my birthday.

Your Turn

Write five sentences about how you feel in different situations: I feel nervous when… I’m happy when… I get bored when… Then write how a friend or family member looks today.

Connect

Check feelings words in our Vocabulary Quiz (A1).

Try our Vocabulary Quiz →

Match feelings words to their meanings in our Match the Definition game.

Try our Match the Definition game →

CEFR A1 — Spoken Production: I can describe how I feel using simple words and give a simple reason.

Azizul Hakim
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