This introduction covers El aspecto físico — Physical Appearance within Physical + personality descriptions for GCSE Spanish. Revise Physical + personality descriptions in Theme 1 — People & Lifestyle for GCSE Spanish with 13 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. Use this page as part of a wider topic revision path rather than treating it as an isolated fact. It is section 1 of 4 in this topic. Use this introduction to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
👤 El aspecto físico — Physical Appearance
Spanish uses two different verbs for physical description: tener (to have) for hair and eyes, and ser (to be) for height and build. Mixing them up is one of the most common GCSE errors — the table below shows which verb goes where.
| Estatura y complexión — Height & build (ser) | Pelo y ojos — Hair & eyes (tener) |
|---|---|
| es alto/a (is tall) | tiene el pelo rubio (has blond hair) |
| es bajo/a (is short) | tiene el pelo negro (has black hair) |
| es de mediana estatura (is of average height) | tiene el pelo castaño (has brown/chestnut hair) |
| es delgado/a (is slim) | tiene el pelo pelirrojo (has red hair) |
| es gordo/a (is overweight) | tiene el pelo canoso (has grey hair) |
| es de complexión media (is of average build) | tiene el pelo largo/corto (has long/short hair) |
| tiene el pelo rizado/liso/ondulado (curly/straight/wavy) | |
| tiene los ojos azules/marrones/verdes/grises/negros | |
| lleva gafas (wears glasses) | |
| lleva barba / lleva bigote (has a beard / moustache) |
Describe appearance in Spanish using tener for hair and eyes, and ser for height and build.
Practice questions for Physical + personality descriptions
Quick recall flashcards
alto / alta
tall
Ejemplo: Mi hermano es alto. Mi hermana es alta.
bajo / baja
short (in height)
Ejemplo: Mi madre es bastante baja.