Emotions Vocabulary

WORDS CREATE REALITY… Do you have a proper vocab for emotions?

Here are some suggestions for using more specific words, based on the emotion wheel in the image:

Instead of saying “happy”, consider more precise terms like content, proud, optimistic or playful to capture the nuance of positive feelings.

Rather than “angry”, words like critical, distant, frustrated or aggressive convey the spectrum of anger more vividly.

“Sad” can be expressed with greater specificity using descriptors such as guilty, depressed, lonely or withdrawn.

For “fearful” emotions, try anxious, insecure, scared or shocked to pinpoint the type of fear being experienced.

Broadening our emotional vocabulary allows us to communicate feelings with greater clarity and precision. This image provides a helpful framework for finding the right words to articulate the complexities of human emotions in a more meaningful way.