Descriptive Words

Use these words in your proposals, estimates, and meetings to identify your design objectives before the visuals take form. Also encourage your clients to use adjectives to define the project rather than images. Once you start to settle on visuals, you can get locked in and become blind to other, potentially better, alternatives. These words are listed in pairs of opposites.

• cool — warm
• conservative — progressive
• stable — dynamic
• traditional — innovative
• calm — energetic
• sophisticated — rough
  
• timeless — trendy
• serious — playful
• formal — casual
• masculine — feminine
• classic — contemporary
• enduring — fresh
  
• subdued — aggressive
• simple — complex
• hard — soft
• geometric — organic
• muted — bright
• sweet — spicy
• dependable — unpredictable
• secure — rebellious
• spiritual — scientific
• enlightened — primitive
• natural — engineered
• majestic — humble
• pure — wise
• delicate — robust
• relaxing — exciting
• passionate — clinical
• credible — mysterious
• crisp — lush
• hot — cold