Words Used to Describe Theatre Costumes
Here’s a list of 500 words I have compiled to assist drama students and teachers in describing theatre costumes on stage. This list should prove useful for class discussions and essays after theatre visits.
| acceptable | forced | scholarly |
| adequate | formidable | scrappy |
| adorned | formless | screwball |
| aesthetic | foxy | seductive |
| airy | fresh | seemly |
| alluring | frightful | sensible |
| alternative | frivolous | sensual |
| amazing | garish | sensuous |
| amiss | gaudy | serviceable |
| amusing | gay | severe |
| annoying | genuine | shabby |
| apparelled | glamourous | shabby |
| applicable | glittery | shapely |
| appropriate | glitzy | sharp |
| apt | gloomy | shoddy |
| arrayed | glorious | showy |
| arresting | good | significant |
| artificial | gorgeous | simple |
| astonishing | graceful | sinful |
| astounding | graceless | sleazy |
| attractive | grim-looking | sleek |
| audacious | guache | slick |
| austere | handsome | slight |
| authentic | happening | slim |
| avant-garde | hard | sloppy |
| awkward | harsh | slovenly |
| bad | heavenly | small |
| balanced | heavy | smart |
| bare | hip | smooth |
| beautiful | historic | snappy |
| becoming | ho-hum | soft |
| befitting | hopeless | solid |
| beguiling | horrible | soothing |
| benign | hot | sophisticated |
| bewitching | hued | spartan |
| bichrome | huge | specked |
| bicoloured | humdrum | speckled |
| big | hypnotising | spectacular |
| bizarre | imaginative | spellbinding |
| bland | important | spiffy |
| bleached | impressive | spiritual |
| bleak | improper | splashy |
| bold | in | splendid |
| boring | inappropriate | spotted |
| brave | inconsequential | spruce |
| breathtaking | inconspicuous | square |
| bright | indigenous | stained |
| brilliant | innocent | stale |
| calculating | innovative | stark |
| canny | insignificant | stately |
| captivating | interesting | stereotyped |
| charming | intolerable | sterile |
| cheap | intricate | stiff |
| checkered | intriguing | stirring |
| cheesy | irksome | straight |
| chic | ironed | straightforward |
| chromatic | irrelevant | strained |
| civilised | irritating | strange |
| clam | jaded | streaked |
| classic | lace | striped |
| classy | lacklustre | structured |
| clean | large | stuffy |
| clear | learned | stunning |
| clownish | light | stupid |
| coarse | little | styleless |
| coloured | loud | stylised |
| colourful | loutish | stylish |
| colourless | lukewarm | stylistic |
| comfortable | mainstream | suave |
| common | majestic | subdued |
| commonplace | marbled | substantial |
| compact | marvellous | subtle |
| complex | masculine | suitable |
| complicated | masked | summery |
| conservative | meaningful | super |
| conspicuous | meaningless | surprising |
| contemporary | mellow | svelte |
| contoured | mesmerising | swanky |
| contrived | messy | swish |
| conventional | minimalist | tacky |
| cool | minor | tame |
| correct | mismatched | tantalising |
| cosmopolitan | modern | tasteful |
| couture | modest | tasteless |
| crafty | monochromatic | tawdry |
| creative | monochromic | tawdry |
| crinkled | mottled | tepid |
| crude | multicoloured | terrestial |
| cultured | multihued | terrible |
| curious | muted | terrific |
| curvaceous | mysterious | thin |
| curvy | naïve | thoughtful |
| daily | naked | thrilling |
| dandy | natural | tidy |
| dapper | naturalistic | tinged |
| dappled | naughty | tiny |
| daring | neat | tolerable |
| dark | negligible | toned |
| dazzling | neutral | toned-down |
| debonair | newsworthy | transcendent |
| decent | notorious | trashy |
| deceptive | obscure | trendy |
| decorated | odd | trichromatic |
| desirable | old-looking | tricoloured |
| dichromatic | oppressive | trifling |
| dim | ordinary | trimmed |
| diplomatic | original | trivial |
| dirty | ornate | two-tone |
| discreet | orthodox | ugly |
| disguised | ostentatious | ultrachic |
| dishevelled | other-worldly | ultracool |
| distinguished | outmoded | ultrasmart |
| doggish | outstanding | unacceptable |
| dotted | overdone | unadorned |
| dowdy | overstated | unattractive |
| down-market | pale | unbecoming |
| drab | palish | unchic |
| drag | patterned | uncivilised |
| dramatic | peaceful | uncool |
| dreadful | peculiar | uncouth |
| dreary | pedestrian | undecorated |
| dressy | perfect | underdone |
| dry | period | understated |
| dubious | pertinent | undistinguished |
| dull | plaid | undramatic |
| dumb | plain-vanilla | unearthly |
| dusty | pointed | uneducated |
| dyed | pointless | unembellished |
| educated | polished | unexciting |
| effectual | polychromatic | unfashionable |
| elaborate | posh | unglamourous |
| electrifying | posh | unimportant |
| elegant | powerful | uninteresting |
| embellished | practical | unkempt |
| embroidered | pretentious | unobtrusive |
| enchanting | pretty | unoriginal |
| engrossing | problematic | unpolished |
| enormous | prominent | unpretentious |
| enthralling | proper | unreal |
| entrancing | provocative | unrealistic |
| ethereal | psychedelic | unseemly |
| everyday | purposeful | unsophisticated |
| evocative | purposeless | unspectacular |
| exaggerated | questionable | unsuitable |
| exciting | quiet | untidy |
| exhilarating | ravishing | unusual |
| exquisite | raw | upmarket |
| extraordinary | real | upscale |
| extreme | realistic | useful |
| eye-opening | refined | veiled |
| eye-popping | relevant | vibrant |
| fabulous | remarkable | voguish |
| faded | respectable | wacky |
| fair | restrained | warm |
| fake | right | washed-out |
| fancy | risky | washed-up |
| fascinating | risque | weary |
| fashionable | ritzy | weighty |
| feminie | riveting | wintry |
| fit | robust | wispish |
| fitting | roughened | wonderful |
| flamboyant | routine | wondrous |
| flashy | royal | worldy |
| flattering | rude | wrinkled |
| flecked | rugged | wrong |
| fleshy | satisfactory | young-looking |
| foppish | savvy |
Not sure of the meaning of a word on the list? Look it up in the dictionary.
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