Feelings and emotions

Feelings words say how someone feels: ⟦happy⟧, ⟦sad⟧, ⟦angry⟧, ⟦scared⟧, ⟦worried⟧, ⟦excited⟧, ⟦bored⟧, ⟦tired⟧. We ask ⟦How are you feeling?⟧ or ⟦How do you feel?⟧ and answer ⟦I feel happy.⟧ or ⟦I'm a bit tired.⟧

Key facts

• Good feelings: ⟦happy⟧, ⟦excited⟧ (you can't wait), ⟦proud⟧ (you did something well), ⟦relaxed⟧ or ⟦calm⟧ (no worries), ⟦surprised⟧ (something you didn't expect).
• Bad feelings: ⟦sad⟧, ⟦lonely⟧ (alone, with no friends), ⟦angry⟧, ⟦scared⟧ or ⟦afraid⟧, ⟦worried⟧ and ⟦nervous⟧ (about what might happen), ⟦embarrassed⟧, ⟦confused⟧, ⟦bored⟧, ⟦tired⟧.
• Use ⟦feel⟧, ⟦be⟧ or ⟦look⟧ + the feeling: ⟦She feels sad.⟧ ⟦I'm worried.⟧ ⟦You look tired.⟧ Add ⟦a bit⟧, ⟦very⟧ or ⟦really⟧ to say how much.
• Some feelings take a preposition: ⟦scared of spiders⟧, ⟦worried about the test⟧, ⟦excited about the trip⟧, ⟦angry with my brother⟧, ⟦interested in music⟧.
• ⟦-ed⟧ words say how a person feels: ⟦I'm bored.⟧ ⟦-ing⟧ words describe what causes the feeling: ⟦The film is boring.⟧ (also ⟦excited/exciting⟧, ⟦tired/tiring⟧, ⟦interested/interesting⟧).

Worked examples