Terms for describing tone
Tone: The Speaker’s Attitude
| POSITIVE TONE WORDS | NEUTRAL | NEGATIVE TONE WORDS |
|---|
| admiring | commanding | abhorring |
| adoring | direct | acerbic |
| affectionate | impartial | ambiguous |
| appreciative | indirect | ambivalent |
| approving | meditative | angry |
| bemused | objective | annoyed |
| benevolent | questioning | antagonistic |
| blithe | speculative | anxious |
| calm | unambiguous | apathetic |
| casual | unconcerned | apprehensive |
| celebratory | understated | belligerent |
| cheerful | | bewildered |
| comforting | | biting |
| comic | | bitter |
| compassionate | | blunt |
| complimentary | | bossy |
| conciliatory | | cold |
| confident | | conceited |
| contented | | condescending |
| delightful | | confused |
| earnest | | contemptuous |
| ebullient | | curt |
| ecstatic | | cynical |
| effusive | | demanding |
| empathetic | | depressed |
| encouraging | | derisive |
| euphoric | | derogatory |
| excited | | desolate |
| exhilarated | | despairing |
| expectant | | desperate |
| facetious | | detached |
| fervent | | disappointed |
| flippant | | disliking |
| forthright | | disrespectful |
| friendly | | doubtful |
| funny | | embarrassed |
| gleeful | | enraged |
| gushy | | evasive |
| happy | | fatalistic |
| hilarious | | fearful |
| hopeful | | forceful |
| humorous | | foreboding |
| interested | | frantic |
| introspective | | frightened |
| jovial | | frustrated |
| joyful | | furious |
| laudatory | | gloomy |
| light | | grave |
| lively | | greedy |
| mirthful | | grim |
| modest | | harsh |
| nostalgic | | haughty |
| optimistic | | holier-than-thou |
| passionate | | hopeless |
| placid | | hostile |
| playful | | impatient |
| poignant | | incredulous |
| proud | | indifferent |
| reassuring | | indignant |
| reflective | | inflammatory |
| relaxed | | insecure |
| respectful | | insolent |
| reverent | | irreverent |
| romantic | | lethargic |
| sanguine | | melancholy |
| scholarly | | mischievous |
| self-assured | | miserable |
| sentimental | | mocking |
| serene | | mournful |
| silly | | nervous |
| sprightly | | ominous |
| straightforward | | outraged |
| sympathetic | | paranoid |
| tender | | pathetic |
| tranquil | | patronizing |
| whimsical | | pedantic |
| wistful | | pensive |
| worshipful | | pessimistic |
| zealous | | pretentious |
| | psychotic |
| | resigned |
| | reticent |
| | sarcastic |
| | sardonic |
| | scornful |
| | self-deprecating |
| | selfish |
| | serious |
| | severe |
| | sinister |
| | skeptical |
| | solemn |
| | somber |
| | stern |
| | stolid |
| | stressful |
| | strident |
| | suspicious |
| | tense |
| | threatening |
| | tragic |
| | uncertain |
| | uneasy |
| | unfriendly |
| | unsympathetic |
| | upset |
| | violent |
| | wry |
