blood descriptive essay

How to Describe Blood in Writing [100 Examples + Tips]

Ever tried describing blood in your story and ended up sounding like a crime report? Let’s turn that clinical detail into gripping prose that makes your readers’ hearts race.

Here is how to describe blood in writing:

Describe blood in writing by focusing on its color, consistency, flow, smell, taste, and impact. Use vivid words like “crimson” and “clotted,” and phrases such as “the metallic scent filled the air” or “dark, dried blood stained the floor” to create intense, immersive scenes.

In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know (with examples) for describing blood in stories.

Types of Blood Descriptions

Red liquid dripping from a kitchen counter onto a kitchen floor at night in a modern kitchen -- How to Describe Blood in Writing

Table of Contents

The first thing you need to know is the type of blood you want to describe:

Fresh Blood – Bright red, indicative of recent injury.
Dried Blood – Darker, crusted, showing time has passed.
Gushing Blood – Abundant, indicating severe injury.
Oozing Blood – Slow flow, often from minor cuts.
Clotted Blood – Thickened, usually in healing wounds.

Traits and Characteristics of Blood for Descriptions

Next, you want to figure out the specific sensory elements you want to highlight in your blood descriptions.

Think about these traits and characteristics:

Consistency

The color of blood can vary depending on its state and the injury.

Fresh blood is typically bright red, while older blood can turn dark red or even brown as it dries. Describing the color can help set the scene and indicate the severity or age of the injury.

Bright red blood can indicate a recent or severe wound, adding urgency to the scene.

Dark, dried blood suggests older injuries, hinting at a past event.

Example Descriptions:

Bright red blood streamed from the cut, stark against his pale skin.
The dark, dried blood on the floor told a tale of past violence.

Consistency describes how thick or thin the blood is.

Blood can vary from thin and watery to thick and clotted. Fresh blood is often thinner, while clotted blood is thicker and more viscous.

Describing the consistency can add detail to your scene, making it more realistic.

Thin, watery blood can suggest a superficial wound, while thick, clotted blood might indicate an older, healing injury.

Thin, watery blood dripped from the scrape, barely noticeable.
Thick, clotted blood oozed from the wound, a sign of the body’s attempt to heal.

The flow of blood can indicate the severity of the injury.

Gushing blood suggests a serious wound, possibly life-threatening.

Oozing blood indicates a less severe, but still significant, injury. Describing the flow can help convey urgency or calm in a scene.

A rapid flow can create a sense of panic, while a slow ooze might suggest a more controlled situation.

Use flow to influence the pacing and emotional intensity of your scene.

Blood gushed from the deep gash, pooling quickly on the ground.
A slow ooze of blood seeped from the cut, forming a small puddle.

The smell of blood can be distinctive and evocative.

Blood has a metallic scent, often described as similar to rust or iron. This can add a sensory detail to your writing, making the scene more immersive.

Describing the smell of blood can evoke a strong reaction from readers, heightening the emotional impact of the scene.

Use smell to engage readers’ senses and draw them deeper into the narrative.

The metallic scent of blood filled the air, sharp and unmistakable.
A faint, rusty smell lingered in the room, a reminder of the recent violence.

The taste of blood can be described when relevant to the scene.

Blood has a metallic taste, often compared to sucking on a penny. This can be a powerful detail in certain scenes, adding to the visceral experience.

Describing the taste of blood can enhance the reader’s immersion and understanding of the character’s experience.

Use taste sparingly, but effectively, to create a vivid and impactful scene.

He could taste the metallic tang of blood in his mouth, like copper.
The sharp, iron taste of blood made her wince, a stark reminder of her injury.

The impact of seeing blood can vary greatly.

Seeing blood can evoke fear, shock, or even excitement, depending on the context. Describing the emotional impact of blood on characters can deepen readers’ connection to the story.

Use the sight of blood to convey character emotions and heighten the tension in your scene.

The impact can reveal much about the characters and their situation.

The sight of blood made her heart race with fear.
Seeing the blood, he felt a surge of adrenaline and anger.

How to Describe Blood on Hands in a Story

Describing blood on hands can be powerful and evocative. It adds intensity to the scene and reveals character emotions and actions.

Blood on hands can signify guilt, violence, or injury. Fresh blood might be warm and sticky, while dried blood could be crusty and dark.

Consider the setting and the character’s reaction to the blood.

Is it their own or someone else’s? Are they horrified, indifferent, or frantic?

The texture and sensation of the blood can add depth to your description. Describe how it feels—sticky, slippery, or dry—and how it looks—bright red, dark, or smeared.

His hands were smeared with bright red blood, the warmth still clinging to his skin.
She stared at her hands, the dark, crusted blood cracking as she moved her fingers.
Blood dripped from his hands, pooling on the floor beneath him.
Her hands felt sticky with the metallic scent of fresh blood lingering in the air.
The sight of his blood-covered hands made her stomach churn.

How to Describe Blood on the Floor in a Story

Describing blood on the floor sets the scene for violence, injury, or danger.

Fresh blood will be bright red and possibly pooling, while older blood might be dark, dried, or smeared.

Consider the pattern—spatters, puddles, or trails—and what it indicates about the events that occurred. Describing the smell, texture, and appearance of the blood can make the scene more immersive.

Is the floor stained, slippery, or sticky? How do the characters react to seeing the blood?

Use these details to heighten the tension and draw readers into the scene.

Bright red blood pooled on the floor, a stark contrast to the white tiles.
Dark, dried blood stained the floor, a grim reminder of the violence that had occurred.
Blood splattered across the floor, each drop telling a story of the struggle.
The metallic scent of blood filled the air, the floor slick and slippery beneath his feet.
A trail of blood led across the floor, guiding them to the source of the injury.

How Do You Describe Blood Without Saying Blood

Describing blood without directly saying “blood” can add subtlety and creativity to your writing. Here are some effective ways to do it.

Use descriptive phrases that evoke the imagery and sensation of blood.

Focus on its color, texture, and impact. Consider terms like “crimson liquid,” “sticky warmth,” or “ruby droplets.” Mention the metallic scent or taste, or describe the visual contrast it creates in the scene.

The context in which the blood appears can also provide clues to its presence without naming it directly.

By using vivid, sensory details, you can convey the presence of blood in a nuanced and engaging way.

Crimson liquid dripped from the wound, staining the fabric below.
The sticky warmth clung to her skin, a visceral reminder of the injury.
Ruby droplets scattered across the floor, marking a path of violence.
The sharp, metallic scent filled the air, unmistakable and intense.
His hands were covered in a dark, viscous substance, a testament to the recent struggle.

50 Best Words to Describe Blood in a Story

Choosing the right words to describe blood can add vivid detail to your story.

Here are 50 of the best words to use:

Splattering
Rust-colored
Freshly-spilled

50 Best Phrases to Describe Blood in a Story

Phrases can paint vivid pictures in readers’ minds.

Here are 50 of the best phrases to describe blood:

Bright red blood streamed from the wound.
The dark, dried blood told a grim story.
Fresh blood pooled on the ground.
Thick, clotted blood oozed from the cut.
Blood gushed from the deep gash.
A slow ooze of blood seeped from the wound.
The metallic scent of blood filled the air.
A rusty smell lingered in the room.
He could taste the metallic tang of blood.
The sharp, iron taste made her wince.
Blood stained his clothes, a stark reminder of the battle.
The sight of blood made her heart race.
A trickle of blood ran down his arm.
Blood spattered across the walls.
The fresh blood was bright against his pale skin.
The old blood was dark and crusted.
The blood flowed steadily, refusing to stop.
The metallic taste of blood filled his mouth.
Blood dripped from the knife.
The smell of blood was overwhelming.
Blood oozed from the wound, slow and steady.
The sight of blood made her feel faint.
Blood pooled around his feet.
The warm blood felt sticky on her skin.
Blood splattered as the fight continued.
The blood was thick and viscous.
Blood trickled down his face.
The blood was bright and fresh.
A smear of blood marked the spot.
Blood streamed from the injury.
The dark blood was nearly black.
The blood had a coppery scent.
Blood gushed from the wound, unstoppable.
The blood oozed out slowly.
Blood stained the ground.
Blood spurted from the cut.
The sight of blood turned his stomach.
Blood soaked into the fabric.
The blood was still warm.
Blood smeared across the floor.
The thick blood clung to his fingers.
Blood dribbled from the wound.
Blood covered the blade.
The blood was congealed and dark.
A pool of blood spread slowly.
Blood flowed from the cut, slow but steady.
The blood was bright and alarming.
Blood spattered on his face.
The metallic tang of blood was unmistakable.

3 Examples of Describing Blood in Writing

To effectively convey the presence and impact of blood, it’s useful to see examples in different writing styles.

Here are three examples: in a horror novel, a medical drama, and a fantasy adventure.

Example 1: Horror Novel

The old house was silent except for the creaking floorboards under Jane’s feet. She moved cautiously, her flashlight cutting through the darkness. Suddenly, she froze. There, splattered across the wall, was fresh blood. It was bright red, stark against the peeling wallpaper. The metallic scent hit her next, making her stomach churn.

Her hands trembled as she reached out to touch it. The blood was still wet, warm even. A sense of dread washed over her. Someone had been hurt here, and it had happened recently. The slow, oozing drops of blood trailing down the wall seemed to pulse with life, as if the house itself was bleeding.

Example 2: Medical Drama

Dr. Thompson rushed into the operating room, where chaos reigned. The patient on the table had a severe abdominal wound, and blood was gushing out at an alarming rate. The bright red blood contrasted sharply with the sterile white of the surgical instruments. Nurses worked frantically to stem the flow, but the blood kept coming.

It was thin and watery, a sign of a severed artery. The metallic smell of blood filled the air, mingling with the antiseptic scent of the hospital. Dr. Thompson quickly donned his gloves and took over, his hands steady despite the urgency. He could feel the thick, clotted blood as he worked to close the wound, his mind focused on saving the patient’s life.

Example 3: Fantasy Adventure

Eldrin crouched behind a boulder, his heart pounding. The battle had been fierce, and blood stained the ground around him. He glanced at his arm, where a deep cut oozed dark, thick blood.

The metallic scent of blood mixed with the earthy smell of the forest. He winced as he wrapped a cloth around the wound, the pain sharp and unrelenting. The sight of his own blood made him grit his teeth in determination. He had to keep going.

The blood flowed steadily, not too fast, but enough to be a concern. Eldrin took a deep breath, ignoring the taste of iron in his mouth, and pushed forward, his resolve unshaken.

Check out this good video about how to write better and more immersive descriptions, including about blood:

Final Thoughts: How to Describe Blood in Writing

From the metallic scent to the sticky texture, blood has so much descriptive potential. Use it wisely, and your readers will feel every drop.

How To Describe A Crime Scene In A Story (100+ Examples)
35 Tips for Writing Fight Scenes (Ultimate Guide + Examples)
How to Describe a Phone Ringing in Writing (+Examples)
250 Horror Writing Prompts (Scary Good Ideas)
How To Write A Horror Romance Novel (Tips, Examples, Guide)

Antisocial Media

How to Write Gore

Caravaggio, The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist

Gore needs to be visceral and this can be hard to do, especially if you lack confidence in your own writing or ability. To write about gore effectively requires self-confidence, especially when overly-descriptive or detached writing will kill a scene. The words themselves do not need to be exceptionally graphic or explicit—you can write about gore through subtle means and still get the desired effect—but it must be delivered effectively and without shying away from what needs to be said. This is a guide to calm worries when writing gory scenes and create repulsive yet engaging writing. There will be blood, and gore, and it will get graphic, so be warned.

Terminology

The words you use when writing about gore are essential to get right. Ridiculous analogies, overly-descriptive metaphors, or obscure similes will confound the reader and restrict your flow of words. Choose your language carefully and use comparisons as sparingly as possible to create a greater impact.

I start stabbing him in the stomach, lightly, above the dense matted patch of pubic hair. This sobers him up and instinctively he tries to cover himself with his hands and the dog starts yipping, really furiously, but it doesn’t attack, and I keep stabbing at the bum now between his fingers, stabbing at the backs of his hands. His eye, burst open, hangs out of its socket and runs down his face and he keeps blinking which causes what’s left of it inside the wound to pour out like red, veiny egg yolk. Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho

This whole scene is shocking and horrific due to the violence and cold aggression delivered, but the single simile at the end of the extract holds the most disgust. The two words that compare the detached eye to something the reader can understand, and create a repulsive visual representation, are ‘egg yolk.’ It gives so much context, and shows considerably more than an excessive detailing of the actual appearance would.

Another way to use language when writing gore is to suggest and insinuate, skirting around the details whilst mentioning just enough to allow the reader to create the scene themselves. This sometimes has the effect of increasing the number of similes and metaphors used, but consistency and elaboration can prevent sentences straying from shocking into cringe-inducing, or even comical. To maintain the horror, occasionally you have to obscure it slightly.

The face of Olson Read, when she found him, his neck and head, this last 10 percent of him was still perfect. Beautiful even, compared to the peeling, boiled-food rest of his body. Still screaming. As if the stars give a shit. This something left of Olson, dragging itself down this side of the White River, it stumbled, knees wobbly, staggering and coming apart. There were parts of Olson already gone. His legs, below the knees, cooked and drug off over the broken ice. Bit and pulled off, the skin first and then the bones, the blood so cooked inside there’s nothing going off behind him but a trail of his own grease. His heat melting deep in the snow. Chuck Palahniuk, Haunted

In this section of the book, Olson Read had fallen into a geyser. This is the aftermath, described as he was found by the section’s protagonist. Palahniuk switches between intense detail and action, almost musing on the scene as narrator, to deliver a gory and yet captivating passage that analogises more than it should, but gets away with it.

Whether you decide to embrace or avoid analogies, ensure what you use is consistent and in the language of your characters. The right word, although usually innocent, can become the most graphic descriptor if placed correctly, and so the gore you insinuate becomes an unstoppable mental picture for the reader.

One of the main criticisms of written gore, particularly in transgressive or fantasy novels, is how over-the-top it all appears. As a writer, you strive to ensure your dialogue is naturalistic and fits within the world you are writing in, similarly your characters’ actions are reasonable and logical, so why not make the gore accurate?

Stoop low, they said, under the smoke. Don’t run, you’ll bump into things and die. She was locked in. Locked in. Walking, stooping low, fingers trailing on the floor, she found legs—other end—she found hair, a hairy flap, put her hand in something soft below the hair. Only pulp, sharp bone splinters and a loose eye in it. Thomas Harris, Red Dragon

There is no overt description of horror in this scene as Reba, a blind woman trapped in a burning house, discovers a body, but instead a slow-dawning realisation of what her hands are feeling. The last thing she heard was a shotgun blast and this description of a corpse with no face is both graphic and realistic considering the range of the self-inflicted shot, as are her actions.

The other point when looking at writing gore is to consider how it would affect those who witness, or are part of, the scene. Considering some people pass out at the sight of blood, being party to excessive gore would surely have a dramatic influence over anyone, and as such it is always worth considering how characters are reacting.

Meanwhile, I did nothing but vomit. Over and over again. Long after it seemed there was nothing more for me to bring up, I continued to vomit. At last, the bearlike Mongolian officer held up the skin of Yamamoto’s torso, which he had so cleanly peeled off. Even the nipples were intact. Never to this day have I seen anything so horrible. Someone took the skin from him and spread it out to dry the way we might dry a sheet. All that remained lying on the ground was Yamamoto’s corpse, a bloody red lump of meat from which every trace of skin had been removed. The most painful sight was the face. Two large white eyeballs stared out from the red mass of flesh. Teeth bared, the mouth stretched wide open as if in a shout. Two little holes were all that remained where the nose had been removed. The ground was a sea of blood. Haruki Murakami, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

This conclusion to the torture and skinning alive of Yamamoto is terrifyingly realistic yet almost placid in its retelling. Murakami’s narrator is both repulsed by and accepting of this memory, and recalls it in such vivid detail, showing both absolute disgust and the trauma this event, and memory of it, have inflicted.

Ensuring the physical description and characters’ actions and reactions are accurate and follow the rules of the world in which your story is told will allow the reader to successfully continue suspending their disbelief and experience the scene instinctually. This will add more drama and weight to those moments which are so horrific they stay with the reader long after the book is over.

A lack of accurate pacing is one of the downfalls of bad gore scenes; but this can be solved with both a little research and a sensible approach.

It was human, she saw, or had been. But the body had been ripped apart and sewn together again with most of its pieces either missing or twisted and blackened as if in a furnace. There was an eye, gleaming at her, and the ladder of a spine, the vertebrae stripped of muscle, a few unrecognisable fragments of anatomy. That was it. That such a thing might live beggared reason—what little flesh it owned was hopelessly corrupted. Yet live it did. Its eye, despite the rot it was rooted in, scanned her every inch, up and down. Clive Barker, The Hellbound Heart

Barker’s slow reveal of the creature in the gap between the walls builds on the already unbearable level of tension maintained throughout the story. The reader is offered the merest glimpse of what remains of Frank during his first appearance after being taken by the Cenobites, and it is drip-fed throughout the paragraph. What happened to him during the intervening period is rightly left to the imagination, though the description of what he has become does suggest something truly horrible.

By contrast, faster explanations—when done right—can be just as disturbing, if the text is not just gore for its own self-indulgence. Even when describing excessive gore, pacing can even out the scene. Separating elements of the description using action or tangential details can create a meandering flow of disgust.

A legion of horribles, hundreds in number, half naked or clad in costumes attic or biblical or wardrobed out of a fevered dream with the skins of animals and silk finery and pieces of uniform still tracked with the blood of prior owners, coats of slain dragoons, frogged and braided cavalry jackets, one in a stovepipe hat and one with an umbrella and one in white stockings and a bloodstained wedding veil and some in headgear or cranefeathers or rawhide helmets that bore the horns of bull or buffalo and one in a pigeontailed coat worn backwards and otherwise naked and one in the armor of a Spanish conquistador, the breastplate and pauldrons deeply dented with old blows of mace or sabre done in another country by men whose very bones were dust and many with their braids spliced up with the hair of other beasts until they trailed upon the ground and their horses’ ears and tails worked with bits of brightly colored cloth and one whose horse’s whole head was painted crimson red and all the horsemen’s faces gaudy and grotesque with daubings like a company of mounted clowns, death hilarious, all howling in a barbarous tongue and riding down upon them like a horde from a hell more horrible yet than the brimstone land of Christian reckoning, screeching and yammering and clothed in smoke like those vaporous beings in regions beyond right knowing where the eye wanders and the lip jerks and drools. Cormac McCarthy, Blood Meridian

The suggested gore combined with the increasing swell of this lengthy sentence adds to the impression of a growing mass of ‘horribles,’ as McCarthy calls them. The purposeful lack of punctuation builds momentum and increases the pressure of the words, mounting to a tidal force of terrifying enemies wearing the bloodstained clothes of their victims. The excesses of blood and use of human remains as decoration further adds to the dread that the relentless pace creates.

Whether the scene requires fast or slow pacing, and however you choose to reveal the gore, remember that some elements are best left unwritten. Those parts that are not explicitly mentioned, but instead insinuated, are the details that the reader will remember. Creating your own mental image is much stronger than imagining someone else’s, so by guiding the reader and pacing the description it is possible to have them conjure the gore for themselves, thereby leaving a lasting impression that is much harder to shake.

Privacy Overview

BiologyDiscussion.com
Follow Us On:
Google Plus
Publish Now

Essay on Blood: Top 6 Essays | Circulatory System | Human Physiology

ADVERTISEMENTS:

Here is an essay on ‘Blood’ for class 9, 10, 11 and 12. Find paragraphs, long and short essays on ‘Blood’ especially written for school and college students.

Essay on Blood

Essay Contents:

Essay on the Blood Groups

ADVERTISEMENTS: (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Essay # 1. Blood and Its Composition in Humans:

The blood is a fluid connective tissue which plays an important role in supplying oxygen to all tissues and cells of the body and removing carbon dioxide from the body. The total volume of blood forms about 1/12th of the body weight or about 5 to 6 liters of blood. Blood is heavier than water with a specific gravity of 1.04 – 1.07. It is slightly alkaline in nature.

Composition of Blood:

Blood is composed of two components:

1. Blood Plasma:

A fluid which forms about 55% of the total volume of blood.

2. Blood Cells:

Which are floating freely in the blood plasma. The amount is about 45% of the total volume of blood.

Essay # 2. Blood Plasma in Humans:

Blood plasma or serum is a non-cellular fluid, of yellow colour and alkaline in nature. It is mainly consisting of water and other solid substances.

1. Water-90 to 92%

2. Solid substances – 8 to 10%

Solid substance of blood plasma include the following material:

(a) Protein 7.0%:

The important plasma proteins are Albumin (4.7 – 5.7%), Globulin (1.3 – 2.5%), Fibrinogen (0.2 – 0.4%), Prothrombin (0.1 -1.0)

(b) Inorganic constituents – 0-9%:

These are salts of sodium potassium, calcium magnesium, phosphorous, iron, copper etc.

Urea, uric acid, creatinine, ammonia, amino acids, xanthine etc.

Phospholipids, natural fat, cholesterol etc.

(e) Carbohydrates, Glucose etc.

(f) Other substances:

Internal secretions or hormones antibodies, enzymes etc.

(g) Colouring matter:

Bilirubin, carotene etc. which gives yellow colour to plasma.

(h) Heparin is present in plasma which is an anticoagulant released by the liver cells.

3. Plasma carries gases like oxygen and carbon dioxide.

Plasma Proteins:

In normal individuals the total amount of plasma protein varies from 6.5 – 7.5 % average is about 7%.

The followings are the plasma protein:

There are normally 4.7 – 5.7% of albumin in the plasma. They are the smallest blood proteins formed in liver. It has three functions.

(1) It is responsible for the osmotic pressure which maintains the blood volume.

(2) Many special substances are carried which combines with the albumin.

4. It provides protein to the tissues.

The amount of serum globulin is about 1.3 – 2.5%. It is insoluble in distilled water but soluble in salt solution. Globulin is much more variable than albumin in composition. They are carrier proteins and also maintain osmotic pressure. This comprises a large number of different proteins. They act as the antibodies and protect the body against the attack of disease germs.

Fibrinogen:

The amount of fibrinogen in blood plasma is about 0.2 – 0.4%. It is essential for clotting of blood during which fibrinogen is converted to fibrin.

Prothrombin:

0.1% of prothrombin are present in Blood plasma. They act as blood clotting factor. Vitamin K helps in the formation of prothrombin in the liver.

Functions of Blood plasma:

1. Plasma acts as the medium for transmission and circulation of nutrients, salts, fats, glucose, amino-acids, vitamins, oxygen, hormones etc. to the tissues.

2. It is the medium for removal of waste materials like urea, uric-acid, carbon dioxide, excess water and other such things.

The Red Blood cells originate in bone marrow. In process of development in the bone marrow the red cells pass through several stages. At first, they are large and the edges are uneven. They contain a nucleus but no haemoglobin. When the R.B.C are matured, they are charged with haemoglobin and finally lose their nucleus. These cells are then passed out for circulation in the blood.

The normal life span of R.B.C is about 120 days, then they are destroyed. These cells are disintegrated in the spleen and liver. The globin of the haemoglobin is broken down into amino acids to be used as protein in the tissues.

The iron in the haem is removed for the formation of new R.B.C. The rest of the haem is converted into bilirubin, an yellow pigment and biliverdin, a green pigment. During severe bleeding, red-cells with haemoglobin are lost. In moderate hemorrhage these red cells are replaced when balanced diet is taken.

Functions of Erythrocytes:

1. Erythrocytes have respiratory function. Haemoglobin of R. B. C. attracts oxygen from the air sacs and converted into oxy-haemoglobin in the lungs. So that the blood is purified. Thus Red cells supply oxygen to the tissues and cells remove the waste product like carbon dioxide.

2. The Red cells maintain acid-base balance. It is carried out by the buffering action of haemoglobin.

3. It maintains ion-balance in the blood.

4. Red cells help to maintain the viscosity of blood.

5. Various pigments like bilirubin and biliverdin are produced after the disintegration of Red cells.

Haemoglobin:

Haemoglobin is the red pigment present in Red blood cells. It is a complex protein rich in iron. It is consisting of two parts – 96% of globin, a protein substance and 4% of Hoem, an iron containing pigment. Haemoglobin is synthesized inside the redcells in the bone marrow. The content of haemoglobin present in normal blood is 15 gms per 100 ml of blood and this amount is usually called hundred percent. The amount over 90% is considered normal. In the foetus the concentration is highest. At birth it is 23 gms per 100 ml.

In females, the amount of haemoglobin is slightly lower than in males. The average is 13.7% in females. At higher altitude haemoglobin-percentage rises. Exercise, excitement, adrenaline injections etc. increase the amount of haemoglobin. In Anaemia, the amount of haemoglobin present in the blood is diminished. Sometimes in serious cases it may fall below 30% that is 5gms per 100 ml.

Functions of Haemoglobin:

1. It is essential for oxygen carriage.

2. It plays an important part in carbon dioxide removal.

3. It constitutes one of the important buffers of blood and helps to maintain the acid-base balance.

4. Various pigments of bile, stool urine etc. are formed from it.

Anaemia is a condition in which there is a reduction in the total circulating haemoglobin. In some severe forms of Anaemia, the haemoglobin level may fall below 30% that is 5gms per 100 ml. Deficiency of R.B.C. in blood causes anaemia.

Causes of Anaemia:

Causes of Anaemia are:

1. Excessive Blood loss due to hemorrhage, delivery, menstruation etc.

2. Increased destruction of R.B.C. is another cause. In the disease like sickle cell. Thalassemia, continuous malaria, syphilis, there is increased destruction of R.B.C. and haemoglobin is reduced.

3. Failure of function of bone marrow is due to enormous exposure to X-Ray, cancer in bone marrow, poisoning through toxins, kidney disease etc. This is an important cause of reduction of R.B.C and thereby causing Anaemia.

4. Anaemia is caused due to the defective for motion of RBC. Deficiency of Vitamin B 12 , Folic acid and gastric intrinsic factors help in defective R.B.C. formation.

Types of Anaemia:

Anaemia may be of different types:

i. Hypochromic Anaemia or iron deficiency Anaemia.

ii. Pernicious Anaemia or Vitamin B 12 deficiency Anaemia.

iii. Megaloblastic Anaemia or Folic Acid deficiency Anaemia.

i. Hypochromic Anaemia:

This is also known as iron deficiency anaemia. Iron deficiency follows a specific sequence. First the iron reserves drop to lower levels. At the last stage, there is no iron reserves and plasma iron continue to fall and the cells are pale and reduced in size.

The term nutritional anaemia is sometime applied to iron deficiency anaemia. Iron deficiency anemias are widely prevalent throughout the world. Generally, the incidence is high in infants and pregnant woman of low economic status and higher in black than in white individuals. In better economic circumstances the incidence is lower.

The following factors are responsible for iron deficiency anaemia:

1. Blood loss due to accidental, hemorrhage, chronic disease like tuberculosis, ulcers, intestinal disorders, excessive menstrual losses, excessive blood donation, parasites such as hook worm etc.

2. Deficiency of iron in the diet during the period of infancy, adolescent girls, pregnancy, lactation etc.

3. Inadequate absorption of iron during diarrhea pellagra.

4. Nutritional deficiencies like protein Calory Malnutrition.

The main symptoms are skin pallor, weakness, easy fatigability, headache, dizziness, sensitivity to cold, loss of appetite, the heart rate increases, palpitation occurs and there is shortness of breath.

Anaemia can be prevented by consumption of foodstuff like green leafy vegetables, bread and cereals, daily administration of iron salts etc. Ascorbic acid rich juices improve the absorption of iron. Dry milk, egg yolk and other animal foods are essential.

ii. Pernicious Anaemia:

It is caused by a lack of intrinsic factor in the gastric juice and therefore Vitamin B 12 cannot be absorbed. With the absence of Vitamin B 12 the synthesis and maturation of R.B.C. are arrested. This anaemia occurs chiefly in middle aged to elderly persons and may be a genetic defect.

National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) Hyderabad showed that vitamin B 12 deficiency, anaemia can be seen even in breast fed babies, because of the poor vitamin B 12 content of mother’s milk. The vitamin content of breast milk can be improved by supplementation of the mother’s diet with vitamins.

Patients have a pale yellow colour body anorexia, glossitis, abdominal discomfort, frequent diarrhoea, weightloss, and general weakness. There is also neurological change like coldness of the extremities and difficulty in walking.

Vitamin B 12 deficiency can be corrected only through intake of foods of animal origin such as milk, fleshy foods, eggs etc. The Vitamin becomes ineffective when given orally, because of the absence of intrinsic factor. The diet must be corrected for adequate calories and for protein. A soft or even liquid diet is preferable. High protein, high calorie beverages two or three times daily should be given.

iii. Megaloblastic Anaemia:

A deficiency of folic acid leads to arrest of the synthesis and maturation of the red blood cells thus leading to megaloblastic anaemia. A high incidence of folic acid deficiency has been noted in elderly patients co-related with a poor intake of milk, fresh fruits and vegetables. This type of anaemia in babies is more frequent in those born to mothers who also have a folic acid deficiency.

Anaemia is present in infants who have scurvy because lack of ascorbic acid reduces conversion of folic acid to its active form. Women who have used oral contraceptives for a long time may have this type of anaemia.

Consumption of adequate amount of green leafy vegetables and pulses which are rich in folic acid corrects folic acid deficiency. Among the nutritional disorders affecting women in child bearing age, anaemia is one of the most important disease. The cause for this in most cases is iron deficiency. Pregnancy aggravates anaemia in women and anaemia in turn may affect the course of pregnancy. It has been observed that directly or indirectly, anaemia is a major cause of much of the maternal mortality in the country.

2. Leucocytes:

Leucocytes are transparent, colourless and irregular is shape. Nucleus is present in white blood cells. The cells are larger in size and fewer in number than erythrocytes. The size of W.B.C. varies from 8 to 15 microns. Each cubic millimeter of blood contains 6000 -10000 of white cells with an average of 8000. The ratio of WBC and R.B.C. is 1:500 or 600 i.e. for one W.B.C., there are 500 or 600 RBC.

White Blood cells are constantly changing their shape and thus resemble a minute microscopic animal amoeba found in pond water. By means of these movements they are capable of moving from one place to another and even if come out through the thin walls of the smallest blood vessels. They are able to take up the foreign particle, disease germs etc. and protect the body.

Types of Leucocytes:

The leucocytes are broadly classified into two categories:

A. Granulocytes or granular leucocytes.

B. Agranulocytes or Agranuller leucocytes.

A. Granulocytes:

These are also known as polymer pronuclear Leucocytes. All types of granulocytes are formed and stored in the bone marrow until they are required in the circulatory system. The cytoplasm of these cells contains specific granules and the nucleus is divided into many lobes. They form almost 70% of the total white cell count.

These granulocytes are classified into three according to the stain:

(i) Neutrophil Cells:

The cyloplasm of neutrophil cells are packed with granules. They have affinity towards neutral dyes. It is a mixture of both acid and alkaline stain. So it appears purple. The nucleus of this cell has 3 -5 lobes. The amount of these cells is 66% which are phagocytic in action.

cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

Knowledge Base
How to write a descriptive essay | Example & tips

How to Write a Descriptive Essay | Example & Tips

Published on July 30, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on August 14, 2023.

A descriptive essay gives a vivid, detailed description of something—generally a place or object, but possibly something more abstract like an emotion. This type of essay , like the narrative essay , is more creative than most academic writing .

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text

Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes

Descriptive essay topics, tips for writing descriptively, descriptive essay example, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about descriptive essays.

When you are assigned a descriptive essay, you’ll normally be given a specific prompt or choice of prompts. They will often ask you to describe something from your own experience.

Describe a place you love to spend time in.
Describe an object that has sentimental value for you.

You might also be asked to describe something outside your own experience, in which case you’ll have to use your imagination.

Describe the experience of a soldier in the trenches of World War I.
Describe what it might be like to live on another planet.

Sometimes you’ll be asked to describe something more abstract, like an emotion.

If you’re not given a specific prompt, try to think of something you feel confident describing in detail. Think of objects and places you know well, that provoke specific feelings or sensations, and that you can describe in an interesting way.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

The key to writing an effective descriptive essay is to find ways of bringing your subject to life for the reader. You’re not limited to providing a literal description as you would be in more formal essay types.

Make use of figurative language, sensory details, and strong word choices to create a memorable description.

Use figurative language

Figurative language consists of devices like metaphor and simile that use words in non-literal ways to create a memorable effect. This is essential in a descriptive essay; it’s what gives your writing its creative edge and makes your description unique.

Take the following description of a park.

This tells us something about the place, but it’s a bit too literal and not likely to be memorable.

If we want to make the description more likely to stick in the reader’s mind, we can use some figurative language.

Here we have used a simile to compare the park to a face and the trees to facial hair. This is memorable because it’s not what the reader expects; it makes them look at the park from a different angle.

You don’t have to fill every sentence with figurative language, but using these devices in an original way at various points throughout your essay will keep the reader engaged and convey your unique perspective on your subject.

Use your senses

Another key aspect of descriptive writing is the use of sensory details. This means referring not only to what something looks like, but also to smell, sound, touch, and taste.

Obviously not all senses will apply to every subject, but it’s always a good idea to explore what’s interesting about your subject beyond just what it looks like.

Even when your subject is more abstract, you might find a way to incorporate the senses more metaphorically, as in this descriptive essay about fear.

Choose the right words

Writing descriptively involves choosing your words carefully. The use of effective adjectives is important, but so is your choice of adverbs , verbs , and even nouns.

It’s easy to end up using clichéd phrases—“cold as ice,” “free as a bird”—but try to reflect further and make more precise, original word choices. Clichés provide conventional ways of describing things, but they don’t tell the reader anything about your unique perspective on what you’re describing.

Try looking over your sentences to find places where a different word would convey your impression more precisely or vividly. Using a thesaurus can help you find alternative word choices.

My cat runs across the garden quickly and jumps onto the fence to watch it from above.
My cat crosses the garden nimbly and leaps onto the fence to survey it from above.

However, exercise care in your choices; don’t just look for the most impressive-looking synonym you can find for every word. Overuse of a thesaurus can result in ridiculous sentences like this one:

My feline perambulates the allotment proficiently and capers atop the palisade to regard it from aloft.

An example of a short descriptive essay, written in response to the prompt “Describe a place you love to spend time in,” is shown below.

Hover over different parts of the text to see how a descriptive essay works.

On Sunday afternoons I like to spend my time in the garden behind my house. The garden is narrow but long, a corridor of green extending from the back of the house, and I sit on a lawn chair at the far end to read and relax. I am in my small peaceful paradise: the shade of the tree, the feel of the grass on my feet, the gentle activity of the fish in the pond beside me.

My cat crosses the garden nimbly and leaps onto the fence to survey it from above. From his perch he can watch over his little kingdom and keep an eye on the neighbours. He does this until the barking of next door’s dog scares him from his post and he bolts for the cat flap to govern from the safety of the kitchen.

With that, I am left alone with the fish, whose whole world is the pond by my feet. The fish explore the pond every day as if for the first time, prodding and inspecting every stone. I sometimes feel the same about sitting here in the garden; I know the place better than anyone, but whenever I return I still feel compelled to pay attention to all its details and novelties—a new bird perched in the tree, the growth of the grass, and the movement of the insects it shelters…

Sitting out in the garden, I feel serene. I feel at home. And yet I always feel there is more to discover. The bounds of my garden may be small, but there is a whole world contained within it, and it is one I will never get tired of inhabiting.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

Ad hominem fallacy
Post hoc fallacy
Appeal to authority fallacy
False cause fallacy
Sunk cost fallacy

College essays

Choosing Essay Topic
Write a College Essay
Write a Diversity Essay
College Essay Format & Structure
Comparing and Contrasting in an Essay

(AI) Tools

Grammar Checker
Paraphrasing Tool
Text Summarizer
AI Detector
Plagiarism Checker
Citation Generator

Receive feedback on language, structure, and formatting

Professional editors proofread and edit your paper by focusing on:

Academic style
Vague sentences
Style consistency

See an example

The key difference is that a narrative essay is designed to tell a complete story, while a descriptive essay is meant to convey an intense description of a particular place, object, or concept.

Narrative and descriptive essays both allow you to write more personally and creatively than other kinds of essays , and similar writing skills can apply to both.

If you’re not given a specific prompt for your descriptive essay , think about places and objects you know well, that you can think of interesting ways to describe, or that have strong personal significance for you.

The best kind of object for a descriptive essay is one specific enough that you can describe its particular features in detail—don’t choose something too vague or general.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2023, August 14). How to Write a Descriptive Essay | Example & Tips. Scribbr. Retrieved September 9, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/academic-essay/descriptive-essay/

Is this article helpful?

Jack Caulfield

Other students also liked, how to write a narrative essay | example & tips, how to write a literary analysis essay | a step-by-step guide, how to write an expository essay, get unlimited documents corrected.

✔ Free APA citation check included ✔ Unlimited document corrections ✔ Specialized in correcting academic texts

Still have questions? Leave a comment

Add Comment

Checklist: Dissertation Proposal

Enter your email id to get the downloadable right in your inbox!

Examples: Edited Papers

Need editing and proofreading services, guide to a perfect descriptive essay [examples & outline included].

Tags: Academic Writing , Essay , Essay Writing

A descriptive essay is the most creative of all essay types. It involves the use of sensory descriptors and impactful narratives to depict an object, person, or even something abstract like an emotion. This type of essay is administered by teachers and professors to gauge your understanding of language.

In this article, we will guide you through everything there is to know about descriptive essays. This includes the descriptive essay definition, some descriptive essay topics, and various examples. To help you in your essay-writing process, we have also included an outline of a descriptive essay.

But let’s start from the beginning: What is a descriptive essay?

Perfect your essay with our expert editing services today! Get started

What is a descriptive essay?

A descriptive essay is a highly creative form of writing which describes an object, person, location, experience, emotion, or situation. It makes use of vivid imagery and different figures of speech to create a beautiful and immersive experience for the reader.

This type of essay is often assigned in creative writing courses in schools or colleges. It does not involve the presentation of arguments or information. It just involves creatively expressing yourself with the help of various language devices.

Unlike a narrative essay which involves telling a story, a descriptive essay only focuses on one particular object or idea. Although most essay topics are non-fictional, descriptive essay topics can either be fictional or non-fictional.

Let us look at a few examples of topics for a descriptive essay.

Descriptive essay topics

Since writing a descriptive essay is a creative form of writing, it can cover a wide range of topics. These topics can range from practical experiences such as “My Grandpa’s Couch” to thought experiments such as “Living in a world with no concept of time”.

Here are a few more descriptive essay topics:

Exploring a ghost town
A starry night in the mountains
A day in the life of an explorer
Trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Wandering through the Swiss meadows
My childhood home
Memories of grandma’s farm
Experiencing euphoria for the first time
My description of utopia
My most treasured possession

Descriptive essay structure

Since descriptive essays are highly creative in nature, the descriptive essay structure is much more fluid as compared to most academic essay types. Although they do follow a general structure, there is no specific descriptive essay format. It serves more as a guideline than a hard and fast rule.

Descriptive essays generally don’t revolve around proving a point or making an argument. The goal is to simply provide a vivid and detailed description of a particular subject.

Let’s study the basic structure of a descriptive essay:

1. Introduction

Wondering how to start a descriptive essay? Like all essay types, the introduction of a descriptive essay is composed of three key elements: A hook, some background information, and a thesis statement.

However, the thesis statement of a descriptive essay is different from the thesis statements of most academic essays. It simply makes a claim regarding the subject of your choosing.

Here’s an example of a descriptive essay introduction:

Background information
Thesis statement

The last day of school—a momentous occasion that marks the culmination of a year’s worth of hard work and growth. Excitement hangs in the air as students gather for one final day of shared experiences and unforgettable memories. The hallways buzz with chatter and laughter, mingling with the anticipation of summer freedom. It’s a day of mixed emotions, as the promise of lazy days ahead clashes with the bittersweet farewell to teachers and classmates who have become like family. The last day of school is a mosaic of emotions, a snapshot of a moment that holds the weight of an entire academic journey, and a prelude to the new adventures that lie just beyond the horizon.

2. Body paragraph

A descriptive essay usually has three body paragraphs. However, the length and number of paragraphs may vary depending on the complexity and scope of your essay topic.

A body paragraph comprises of a topic sentence that focuses on a particular aspect of the subject. The topic sentence is elaborated upon by sensory, contextual, and emotional descriptors. Each paragraph ends with a transition sentence that provides context for the next paragraph.

Let’s understand this better with the help of an example:

Topic sentence
Description
Transition sentence

Classrooms brim with finality and accomplishment. Doodles and scribbles now grace once-neat desks, testifying to idle daydreams and shared laughter. Colorful displays and academic achievements adorn the walls, silently witnessing each student’s growth. Empty lockers echo the countless exchanges and whispered secrets they once held. Yearbooks circulate like cherished artifacts, pages filled with smiling faces and heartfelt messages. Laughter and hugs fill the hallways as friends make promises to keep in touch and embark on summer adventures. The last day of school etches indelible memories, a tapestry of nostalgia and celebration that encapsulates the joy, camaraderie, and growth of their academic journey.

3. Conclusion

The conclusion of your essay should begin with the restatement of your thesis statement along with its broader implications. You can then provide a quick summary of all the important aspects mentioned in the body paragraphs.

Finally, you can end your essay with a powerful statement or a clincher. This can include anything from a powerful lesson to a thought-provoking quote. The goal is to leave the reader with something to think about.

Here’s an example:

Restated thesis statement
Summary of body paragraphs
Concluding statement

As the final bell echoes through the hallways and students scatter in all directions, school leaves behind a lingering sense of closure and anticipation. It is a day filled with mixed emotions—a blend of nostalgia for the memories created, gratitude for the knowledge gained, and excitement for the new chapter that awaits. The last day of school symbolizes a milestone in each student’s journey, marking the end of one chapter and the beginning of another. It is a time to reflect on the growth, challenges overcome, and friendships forged along the way. The last day of school is not an end, but rather a stepping stone towards new horizons, where each student will continue to learn, explore, and thrive.

Now that we’ve understood how to structure a descriptive essay, let’s figure out how to write it!

How to write a descriptive essay

In order to write a perfect descriptive essay you must effectively make use of multiple creative writing devices. These creative writing devices include figures of speech, imagery, sensory and emotional descriptors, as well as evocative language.

If you find the essay writing process challenging, we’re here to equip you with essential tips on writing a descriptive essay. Let’s take a look at how to write a descriptive essay:

1. Use figures of speech

Literary devices such as similies, metaphors, and imagery are creative devices that describe an object or a person in a figurative sense. These creative devices add an element of interest to your essay, making it more vivid, vibrant, and colorful.

The use of figures of speech can turn an otherwise boring piece of writing into a masterpiece. Take a look at the following example:

On that spot stood an old banyan tree with thick bark and intertwining branches.

Although this example is a good start, it can be made much more interesting with the use of figures of speech.

On that spot stood an old banyan tree with its resolve as strong as iron. Its arms intertwined as they reached for the skies, yearning for the sun.

The use of literary devices such as personification and metaphor makes the banyan tree in the second example come to life. This is how you can make your writing more vivid, descriptive, and poetic.

2. Use your senses

Sensory descriptors are one of the most important aspects of a descriptive essay. The key is to make the reader experience what you’ve experienced. This means appealing to all five senses of the reader.

Although the visual aspect is important, you should also focus on how something sounds, feels, and smells. The experience of touching, smelling, or feeling something is more evocative than simply viewing it.

Some sensory descriptors are used in a literal sense:

The smell of rain in July takes me back to my childhood. The pitter-patter reminds me of my mother’s footsteps, bringing us delicious snacks.

They can also be used metaphorically:

The beautiful, cold gaze of the moon stunned us all.

3. Use evocative language

It is a good idea to use strong, evocative language that conveys an intense action or emotion. Creative use of words is an important factor in writing a descriptive essay since passive language leads to a dull, boring essay. Let’s take a look at the following sentences:

The 100-meter race was completed by Usain Bolt in under 10 seconds.

Usian Bolt whizzed through the 100-meter race in under 10 seconds!

The use of the word “completed” indicates no action and the use of passive voice makes the example dull. On the other hand, the phrase “whizzed through” indicates speed and intensity which makes the second example much more interesting to read.

Now that we’ve understood the different methods of writing a descriptive essay, let’s understand its outline.

Descriptive essay outline

The outline of a descriptive essay is less structured compared to most academic essay types. It merely serves as a guideline that you can use to flesh out your essay. It also helps you develop a coherent structure and logical flow for your topic sentences.

If you’re not familiar with creating an essay outline, you can take help of essay outline generators . In order to help you further develop your essay, we’ve created an outline for your reference. The following descriptive essay outline revolves around the nostalgia experienced when going through an old diary.

Turning the Pages of Time

I. Introduction

A. Hook: Engaging opening sentence to grab the reader’s attention.

B. Background: Briefly explain the significance of finding your old diary and the memories associated with it.

C. Thesis statement: Clearly state the main idea of the essay, highlighting the emotional journey of rediscovering your old diary.

II. The discovery

A. Setting the scene: Describe the circumstances and location where you stumbled upon your old diary.

B. Initial emotions: Express the range of emotions that flooded your mind upon finding the diary.

C. Anticipation: Share the anticipation and curiosity about what lies within the pages of the diary.

III. The diary’s contents

A. Opening the pages: Describe the physical act of opening the diary and the smell and texture of the pages.

B. Memories unfolded: Reflect on the memories and experiences captured in the diary entries.

C. Emotional impact: Discuss the emotional response evoked by reading your own words and reliving past moments.

IV. Nostalgic reflections

A. Time traveling: Explain how reading the diary transported you back to the time and place when the entries were written.

B. Reconnecting with your past self: Describe the process of reconnecting with your past self and reevaluating your thoughts and experiences.

C. Lessons and insights: Highlight any valuable lessons, self-discoveries, or personal growth revealed through the diary’s contents.

V. Resonating with present self

A. Relevance to current life: Discuss how the insights and reflections from the diary still resonate with your present self.

B. Perspective shifts: Explain any shifts in perspective or newfound understanding that arose from revisiting the diary.

C. Appreciation: Express gratitude for the diary and its role in preserving and enriching your personal history.

VI. Cherishing the rediscovery

A. Preservation: Discuss the steps you took to preserve and protect the diary after finding it.

B. Future reflections: Share your intentions and plans for continuing the habit of journaling or preserving personal memories.

C. Closing thoughts: Reflect on the lasting impact of finding your old diary and the value of personal reflection and self-expression.

VII. Conclusion

A. Recap: Summarize the emotional journey of rediscovering your old diary.

B. Significance: Emphasize the personal and emotional significance of reconnecting with your past self through the diary.

C. Closing remarks: Conclude with a reflection on the power of personal artifacts and the importance of preserving one’s history.

Now that we have taken a look at the descriptive essay structure let’s look at an example.

Descriptive essay example

To help you better understand the process of descriptive essay writing, we’ve constructed an example. The following example revolves around an imaginary situation. It describes the writer’s voyage through the cosmos.

Exploring the Cosmos

As the rocket engines ignited, the powerful thrust propelled us into the vast expanse of space. The vibrations rattled through the cabin, merging with the palpable anticipation that filled the air. We were embarking on a remarkable journey through the cosmos, leaving behind the familiarity of Earth and venturing into the unknown.

Outside the small window, the twinkling stars grew brighter, casting a mesmerizing glow on the infinite darkness. The view was awe-inspiring as if we were floating amidst a sea of diamonds, each one beckoning us to explore its mysteries. The depth and grandeur of space stretched out before us, reminding us of the minuscule nature of our existence in the universe.

As we traversed through the cosmic void, weightlessness engulfed our bodies, releasing us from the Earth’s gravitational pull. Every movement became a ballet, effortlessly gliding from one corner of the spacecraft to another. The sensation was both exhilarating and disorienting as if the boundaries of physical limitations had dissolved.

The silence in space was profound, a symphony of tranquility. Without the interference of atmospheric sounds, we were left with the gentle hum of the spaceship’s systems and the rhythmic beating of our own hearts. It was a humbling reminder of the vastness and serenity that lay beyond our home planet.

Farther into our journey, celestial bodies came into view, captivating us with their sheer beauty. The fiery hues of neighboring planets illuminated the darkness, displaying their own distinct personalities. We marveled at the majestic rings of Saturn, a delicate masterpiece encircling the giant planet, and the crimson swirls of Jupiter, a tempestuous giant with its own cosmic dance.

Time seemed to lose its grip on the vastness of space. Hours felt like mere moments as we traveled through light-years, witnessing the unimaginable beauty of celestial phenomena. We were reminded of the sheer magnitude of the cosmos, a testament to the wonders that lie beyond our earthly confines.

Eventually, the time came for us to return to our home planet. As we reentered Earth’s atmosphere, the fiery descent illuminated the sky, marking our triumphant return. The journey through space left an everlasting mark on our souls, forever changing our perception of our place in the universe.

Our journey was more than a physical exploration; it was a voyage of wonder and introspection. It taught us the fragility and interconnectedness of all things and ignited an insatiable curiosity to continue unraveling the mysteries of the cosmos. We were forever transformed by the immensity and beauty that awaited us beyond our pale blue dot in the vast expanse of space.

After writing the essay, it’s important to edit and proofread it, which is a not easy. If you find essay editing challenging, you can consider taking the help of an essay editing service .

Want to keep reading? Here are the newest articles we’ve worked on:

How to Start an Essay
Expository Essays | Step-by-Step Manual
How to Write an Argumentative Essay
Types of Essays
Compare and Contrast Essay

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of a descriptive essay, how to conclude a descriptive essay, how long should a descriptive essay be, what are the five parts of a descriptive essay, what are the two types of descriptions.

Found this article helpful?

Your vs. You’re: When to Use Your and You’re

Your organization needs a technical editor: here’s why, your guide to the best ebook readers in 2024, writing for the web: 7 expert tips for web content writing.

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Get carefully curated resources about writing, editing, and publishing in the comfort of your inbox.

How to Copyright Your Book?

If you’ve thought about copyrighting your book, you’re on the right path.

Terms of service
Privacy policy
Self Publishing Guide
Pre-Publishing Steps
Fiction Writing Tips
Traditional Publishing
Additional Resources
Dissertation Writing Guide
Essay Writing Guide
Academic Writing and Publishing
Citation and Referencing
Partner with us
Annual report
Website content
Marketing material
Job Applicant
Cover letter
Resource Center
Case studies

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Descriptive Essays

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

What is a descriptive essay?

The descriptive essay is a genre of essay that asks the student to describe something—object, person, place, experience, emotion, situation, etc. This genre encourages the student’s ability to create a written account of a particular experience. What is more, this genre allows for a great deal of artistic freedom (the goal of which is to paint an image that is vivid and moving in the mind of the reader).

One might benefit from keeping in mind this simple maxim: If the reader is unable to clearly form an impression of the thing that you are describing, try, try again!

Here are some guidelines for writing a descriptive essay.

Take time to brainstorm

If your instructor asks you to describe your favorite food, make sure that you jot down some ideas before you begin describing it. For instance, if you choose pizza, you might start by writing down a few words: sauce, cheese, crust, pepperoni, sausage, spices, hot, melted, etc. Once you have written down some words, you can begin by compiling descriptive lists for each one.

Use clear and concise language.

This means that words are chosen carefully, particularly for their relevancy in relation to that which you are intending to describe.

Choose vivid language.

Why use horse when you can choose stallion ? Why not use tempestuous instead of violent ? Or why not miserly in place of cheap ? Such choices form a firmer image in the mind of the reader and often times offer nuanced meanings that serve better one’s purpose.

Use your senses!

Remember, if you are describing something, you need to be appealing to the senses of the reader. Explain how the thing smelled, felt, sounded, tasted, or looked. Embellish the moment with senses.

What were you thinking?!

If you can describe emotions or feelings related to your topic, you will connect with the reader on a deeper level. Many have felt crushing loss in their lives, or ecstatic joy, or mild complacency. Tap into this emotional reservoir in order to achieve your full descriptive potential.

Leave the reader with a clear impression.

One of your goals is to evoke a strong sense of familiarity and appreciation in the reader. If your reader can walk away from the essay craving the very pizza you just described, you are on your way to writing effective descriptive essays.

Be organized!

It is easy to fall into an incoherent rambling of emotions and senses when writing a descriptive essay. However, you must strive to present an organized and logical description if the reader is to come away from the essay with a cogent sense of what it is you are attempting to describe.

Link to facebook
Link to linkedin
Link to twitter
Link to youtube
Writing Tips

How to Write a Descriptive Essay

4-minute read

26th February 2020

A descriptive essay, as the name may suggest, is an essay in which you describe something. The idea is to create a vivid picture of something – a person, object, place or experience – for your reader.

But how do you write a descriptive essay? We have a few helpful tips to share.

1. Brainstorming and Organizing Your Ideas

Your first step should be to brainstorm ideas . Think about the qualities of what you’re describing. As well as physical qualities, make notes about any thoughts, memories, and emotions you associate with your subject matter.

This brainstorming will give you the raw material for your descriptive essay. The next step is to create an essay outline. Typically, this will include:

An Introduction – An outline of what you will describe and the “thesis” for your essay (i.e., a key theme that will run through your essay and guide your description). For instance, if writing about an inspirational teacher, you could mention the importance of education in the introduction.
Main Body – A series of paragraphs in which you describe your subject. Each paragraph should cover a single main point, then lead neatly on to the next one, adding to the overall picture you’re creating for the reader.
Conclusion – A final paragraph where you summarize your overall essay. This is also a good place to reaffirm your essay thesis, emphasizing how your description reflects this.

Before you start writing, then, make some notes about what each paragraph in your essay will include. This will then guide the drafting process, making sure your essay has a clear structure.

2. Use Vivid, Sensory Language

A descriptive essay should paint a picture for your reader. And this means you need to use vivid, exciting language rather than a formal, academic tone. Ideas for making your essay more linguistically engaging include:

Using sensory language to evoke how something looked, smelled, etc.
Writing in the present tense to make the situation feel immediate.
Describing feelings and thoughts elicited by the subject of your essay.
Looking for dynamic adjectives and adverbs to use (e.g., you could say something made you “happy,” but “elated” or “delighted” may be stronger).
Using metaphors, similes, and other literary techniques .

Keep your introduction in mind while writing. The language you use should serve the “thesis” you set out there, drawing the reader’s attention to specific aspects of the thing you’re describing.

Find this useful?

Subscribe to our newsletter and get writing tips from our editors straight to your inbox.

3. Show, Don’t Tell

“Show, don’t tell” refers to a technique used by authors to make their writing more engaging. Essentially, all this means is using action, description, and dialogue to paint a picture for the reader rather than simply stating something in plain language. We can see the difference below:

Telling: Miss Hardy was an engaging speaker.

Showing: When Miss Hardy spoke, everyone listened. Her voice bubbled with enthusiasm, bringing even the most mundane subjects to life.

In the first sentence, we simply tell the reader that Miss Hardy was an engaging speaker. But in the second, we try to help the reader picture being in her class, listening to her speak. And by engaging the reader’s imagination like this, we can make our description more memorable.

4. Editing and Proofreading Your Descriptive Essay

Once you have a first draft, you’ll be ready to start editing. The idea here is to go back over your essay – at least once, but possibly multiple times – to look for ways you could improve it. This drafting process may involve:

Making sure your writing is clear, well structured, and impactful.
Rewriting passages that feel clichéd or that could be stronger.
Reading your essay out loud to see how well it flows.
Ensuring that the central theme of your essay is present throughout.

And when you’ve finished redrafting, go through the essay one more time to remove any typos that remain. Alternatively, you can submit your descriptive essay for proofreading . With the expert eye of a professional editor on your side, you can be confident your writing is the best it can be.

Share this article:

Post A New Comment

Got content that needs a quick turnaround? Let us polish your work. Explore our editorial business services.

5-minute read

Free Email Newsletter Template

Promoting a brand means sharing valuable insights to connect more deeply with your audience, and...

6-minute read

How to Write a Nonprofit Grant Proposal

If you’re seeking funding to support your charitable endeavors as a nonprofit organization, you’ll need...

9-minute read

How to Use Infographics to Boost Your Presentation

Is your content getting noticed? Capturing and maintaining an audience’s attention is a challenge when...

8-minute read

Why Interactive PDFs Are Better for Engagement

Are you looking to enhance engagement and captivate your audience through your professional documents? Interactive...

7-minute read

Seven Key Strategies for Voice Search Optimization

Voice search optimization is rapidly shaping the digital landscape, requiring content professionals to adapt their...

Five Creative Ways to Showcase Your Digital Portfolio

Are you a creative freelancer looking to make a lasting impression on potential clients or...

Make sure your writing is the best it can be with our expert English proofreading and editing.

What is a Descriptive Essay? How to Write It (with Examples)

A descriptive essay is a type of creative writing that uses specific language to depict a person, object, experience, or event. The idea is to use illustrative language to show readers what the writer wants to convey – it could be as simple as a peaceful view from the top of a hill or as horrific as living in a war zone. By using descriptive language, authors can evoke a mental image in the readers’ minds, engaging readers and leaving a lasting impression, instead of just providing a play-by-play narrative.

Note that a description and descriptive essay are not the same thing. A descriptive essay typically consists of five or more well-written paragraphs with vivid imagery that can help readers visualize the content, as opposed to a description, which is typically one or more plain paragraphs with no particular structure or appeal. If you are still unsure about how to write a compelling descriptive essay, continue reading!

What is a descriptive essay, types of descriptive essay topics.

Characteristics of descriptive essays

How to write a descriptive essay using a structured outline

Frequently asked questions.

A simple descriptive essay definition is that it is a piece of writing that gives a thorough and vivid description of an object, person, experience, or situation. It is sometimes focused more on the emotional aspect of the topic rather than the specifics. The author’s intention when writing a descriptive essay is to help readers visualize the subject at hand. Generally, students are asked to write a descriptive essay to test their ability to recreate a rich experience with artistic flair. Here are a few key points to consider when you begin writing these.

Look for a fascinating subject

You might be assigned a topic for your descriptive essay, but if not, you must think of a subject that interests you and about which you know enough facts. It might be about an emotion, place, event, or situation that you might have experienced.

Acquire specific details about the topic

The next task is to collect relevant information about the topic of your choice. You should focus on including details that make the descriptive essay stand out and have a long-lasting impression on the readers. To put it simply, your aim is to make the reader feel as though they were a part of the experience in the first place, rather than merely describing the subject.

Be playful with your writing

To make the descriptive essay memorable, use figurative writing and imagery to lay emphasis on the specific aspect of the topic. The goal is to make sure that the reader experiences the content visually, so it must be captivating and colorful. Generally speaking, “don’t tell, show”! This can be accomplished by choosing phrases that evoke strong emotions and engage a variety of senses. Making use of metaphors and similes will enable you to compare different things. We will learn about them in the upcoming sections.

Capture all the different senses

Unlike other academic articles, descriptive essay writing uses sensory elements in addition to the main idea. In this type of essay writing, the topic is described by using sensory details such as smell, taste, feel, and touch. Example “ Mahira feels most at home when the lavender scent fills her senses as she lays on her bed after a long, tiring day at work . As the candle melts , so do her worries” . It is crucial to provide sensory details to make the character more nuanced and build intrigue to keep the reader hooked. Metaphors can also be employed to explain abstract concepts; for instance, “ A small act of kindness creates ripples that transcend oceans .” Here the writer used a metaphor to convey the emotion that even the smallest act of kindness can have a larger impact.

Maintain harmony between flavor and flow

The descriptive essay format is one that can be customized according to the topic. However, like other types of essays, it must have an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. The number of body paragraphs can vary depending on the topic and available information.

It is crucial to remember that a descriptive essay should have a specific topic and goal, such as sharing personal experiences or expressing emotions like the satisfaction of a good meal. This is accomplished by employing exact language, imagery, and figurative language to illustrate concrete features. These language devices allow the writer to craft a descriptive essay that effectively transmits a particular mood, feeling, or incident to readers while also conjuring up strong mental imagery. A descriptive essay may be creative, or it may be based on the author’s own experiences. Below is a description of a few descriptive essay examples that fit into these categories.

Personal descriptive essay example

A personal essay can look like a descriptive account of your favorite activity, a place in your neighborhood, or an object that you value. Example: “ As I step out of the front door, the crisp morning air greets me with a gentle embrace; the big chestnut tree in front, sways in the wind as if saying hello to me. The world unfolds in a symphony of awakening colors, promising a day filled with untold possibilities that make me feel alive and grateful to be born again”.

Imaginative descriptive essay example

You may occasionally be required to write descriptive essays based on your imagination or on subjects unrelated to your own experiences. The prompts for these kinds of creative essays could be to describe the experience of someone going through heartbreak or to write about a day in the life of a barista. Imaginative descriptive essays also allow you to describe different emotions. Example, the feelings a parent experiences on holding their child for the first time.

Characteristics of descriptive essay s

The aim of a descriptive essay is to provide a detailed and vivid description of a person, place, object, event, or experience. The main goal is to create a sensory experience for the reader. Through a descriptive essay, the reader may be able to experience foods, locations, activities, or feelings that they might not otherwise be able to. Additionally, it gives the writer a way to relate to the readers by sharing a personal story. The following is a list of the essential elements of a descriptive essay:

Sensory details
Clear, succinct language
Organized structure
Thesis statement
Appeal to emotion

How to write a descriptive essay, with examples

Writing an engaging descriptive essay is all about bringing the subject matter to life for the reader so they can experience it with their senses—smells, tastes, and textures. The upside of writing a descriptive essay is you don’t have to stick to the confinements of formal essay writing, rather you are free to use a figurative language, with sensory details, and clever word choices that can breathe life to your descriptive essay. Let’s take a closer look at how you can use these components to develop a descriptive essay that will stand out, using examples.

Figurative language

Have you ever heard the expression “shooting for the stars”? It refers to pushing someone to strive higher or establish lofty goals, but it does not actually mean shooting for the stars. This is an example of using figurative language for conveying strong motivational emotions. In a descriptive essay, figurative language is employed to grab attention and emphasize points by creatively drawing comparisons and exaggerations. But why should descriptive essays use metaphorical language? One it adds to the topic’s interest and humor; two, it facilitates the reader’s increased connection to the subject.

These are the five most often used figurative language techniques: personification, metaphor, simile, hyperbole, and allusion.

Simile: A simile is a figure of speech that is used to compare two things while emphasizing and enhancing the description using terms such as “like or as.”

Example: Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving – Albert Einstein

Metaphor: A metaphor are also used to draw similarities, but without using direct or literal comparisons like done in similes.

Example: Books are the mirrors of the soul – Virginia Woolf, Between the acts

Personification: This is the process of giving nonhuman or abstract objects human traits. Any human quality, including an emotional component, a physical attribute, or an action, can be personified.

Example: Science knows no country, because knowledge belongs to humanity, and is the torch which illuminates the world – Louis Pasteur

Hyperbole: This is an extreme form of exaggeration, frequently impractical, and usually employed to emphasize a point or idea. It gives the character more nuance and complexity.

Example: The force will be with you, always – Star Wars

Allusion: This is when you reference a person, work, or event without specifically mentioning them; this leaves room for the reader’s creativity.

Example: In the text below, Robert Frost uses the biblical Garden of Eden as an example to highlight the idea that nothing, not even paradise, endures forever.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay

– Nothing Gold Can Stay by Robert Frost (1923)

Descriptive essays need a combination of figurative language and strong sensory details to make the essay more memorable. This is when authors describe the subject matter employing senses like smell, sound, touch, and taste so that the reader can relate to it better.

Example of a sensory-based descriptive essay: The earthy fragrance of freshly roasted chestnuts and the sight of bright pink, red, orange fallen leaves on the street reminded her that winter was around the corner.

Word choice

Word choice is everything in a descriptive essay. For the description to be enchanting, it is essential to utilize the right adjectives and to carefully consider the verbs, nouns, and adverbs. Use unusual terms and phrases that offer a new viewpoint on your topic matter instead of overusing clichés like “fast as the wind” or “lost track of time,” which can make your descriptive essay seem uninteresting and unoriginal.

See the following examples:

Bad word choice: I was so happy because the sunset was really cool.

Good word choice: I experienced immense joy as the sunset captivated me with its remarkable colors and breathtaking beauty.

Descriptive essay format and outline

Descriptive essay writing does not have to be disorganized, it is advisable to use a structured format to organize your thoughts and ensure coherent flow in your writing. Here is a list of components that should be a part of your descriptive essay outline:

Introduction
Opening/hook sentence
Topic sentence
Body paragraphs
Concrete details
Clincher statement

Introduction:

Hook: An opening statement that captures attention while introducing the subject.
Background: Includes a brief overview of the topic the descriptive essay is based on.
Thesis statement: Clearly states the main point or purpose of the descriptive essay.

Body paragraphs: Each paragraph should have

Topic sentence: Introduce the first aspect or feature you will describe. It informs the reader about what is coming next.
Sensory details: Use emphatic language to appeal to the reader’s senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell).
Concrete details: These are actual details needed to understand the context of the descriptive essay.
Supporting details: Include relevant information or examples to improve the description.

Conclusion:

Summarize key points: Here you revisit the main features or aspects of the subject.
Restate thesis statement: Reinforce the central impression or emotion.
Clincher statement: Conclude with a statement that summarizes the entire essay and serve as the last words with a powerful message.

Revision and editing:

Go over your essay to make sure it is coherent, clear, and consistent.
Check for logical paragraph transitions by proofreading the content.
Examine text to ensure correct grammar, punctuation, and style.
Use the thesaurus or AI paraphrasing tools to find the right words.

A descriptive essay often consists of three body paragraphs or more, an introduction that concludes with a thesis statement, and a conclusion that summarizes the subject and leaves a lasting impression on readers.

A descriptive essay’s primary goal is to captivate the reader by writing a thorough and vivid explanation of the subject matter, while appealing to their various senses. A list of additional goals is as follows: – Spark feeling and imagination – Create a vivid experience – Paint a mental picture – Pique curiosity – Convey a mood or atmosphere – Highlight specific details

Although they both fall within the creative writing category, narrative essays and descriptive essays have different storytelling focuses. While the main goal of a narrative essay is to tell a story based on a real-life experience or a made-up event, the main goal of a descriptive essay is to vividly describe a person, location, event, or emotion.

Paperpal is an AI academic writing assistant that helps authors write better and faster with real-time writing suggestions and in-depth checks for language and grammar correction. Trained on millions of published scholarly articles and 20+ years of STM experience, Paperpal delivers human precision at machine speed.   

Try it for free or upgrade to Paperpal Prime , which unlocks unlimited access to Paperpal Copilot and premium features like academic translation, paraphrasing, contextual synonyms, consistency checks, submission readiness and more. It’s like always having a professional academic editor by your side! Go beyond limitations and experience the future of academic writing. Get Paperpal Prime now at just US$19 a month!  

4 Types of Transition Words for Research Papers

What is a narrative essay how to write it (with examples), you may also like, dissertation printing and binding | types & comparison , what is a dissertation preface definition and examples , how to write a research proposal: (with examples..., how to write your research paper in apa..., how to choose a dissertation topic, how to write a phd research proposal, how to write an academic paragraph (step-by-step guide), maintaining academic integrity with paperpal’s generative ai writing..., research funding basics: what should a grant proposal..., how to write an abstract in research papers....

Descriptive Essay: Your Guide to Writing an Effective One

A descriptive essay is one of the four main types of essays, alongside narrative, argumentative, and expository essays. Among these, descriptive essays can be particularly challenging because they demand a keen eye for detail and an appreciation for aesthetics. By vividly describing scenes and details, you engage your reader’s senses, making your essay memorable and engaging. In this guide, our essay writers will break down the writing process for you, offering step-by-step instructions, practical examples, and clear definitions to help you excel in your next assignment.

What is a Descriptive Essay?

Descriptive writing aims to vividly portray something through essays, helping readers visualize and feel the scene or object being described. Such essays draw on detailed descriptions to create a clear and impactful image that not only presents the subject but also evokes emotions and memories.

There are three main techniques used in descriptive writing: naming, detailing, and comparing .

Naming identifies the subject and its characteristics, answering questions like 'What is it?' and 'What features does it have?'

Detailing elaborates on these features, providing answers to detailed questions such as 'How many are there?' and 'What is its value?' Techniques like synesthesia and comparisons enhance these descriptions.

Comparing uses similes and metaphors to make descriptions more vivid, linking the subject to familiar concepts.

What Is the Purpose of a Descriptive Essay?

The purpose of a descriptive essay is multifaceted. Primarily, it allows writers to give readers a vivid impression of a person, place, or event, making the subject come alive through words. By using detailed descriptions, writers can help readers visualize settings and characters as if they were seeing them firsthand.

Additionally, descriptive essays can serve to clarify abstract ideas. By describing these concepts with concrete images and examples, writers make complex ideas easier to understand and more relatable to the reader.

Descriptive essays also aim to make information more memorable. When details are vivid, they are more likely to stick in the reader's mind, enhancing recall and engagement with the text.

Lastly, it can bolster an argument by providing concrete, detailed evidence that supports a point of view. This helps persuade the reader by making the argument more tangible and credible.

Need Some Help?

You will get your written masterpiece delivered to you on time, with a smile on your face!

Today, you can request help with dissertation or any other written assignment, such as an essay, from competent writers with years of academic experience.

Descriptive Essay Topics

When you're tasked with writing a descriptive essay, you'll usually get a prompt that asks you to describe something. These descriptive essay prompts allow you to explore different settings, time periods, and imaginative scenarios in your essays.

Personal Prompts:

Describe a favorite childhood memory.
Describe a treasured family heirloom.

Imaginative Prompts:

Describe a day in the life of a pirate.
Describe what it would be like to explore an underwater city.

Historical Prompts:

Describe the atmosphere of a bustling ancient marketplace.
Describe the experience of witnessing a significant moment in history, like the moon landing or the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Nature Prompts:

Describe the sights and sounds of a peaceful forest at dawn.
Describe the feeling of standing at the edge of a majestic waterfall.

Everyday Prompts:

Describe the chaos of a busy morning commute in a big city.
Describe the tranquility of a sunset picnic in the countryside.

If you need topic ideas for other essay genres, consult our guide on narrative essay topics .

How to Write a Descriptive Essay in 8 Steps

Now that you understand the essence and purpose of this type of essay let's explore some fundamental yet valuable tips for writing a descriptive essay.

Step 1: Select Your Topic

The first step in creating a captivating descriptive essay is choosing the right topic. Start by paying close attention to your surroundings.

Consider describing a person you know well in your life, like a sibling, a close friend, or a teacher who has made a significant impact on you.
Alternatively, you could focus on a specific place or object that holds sentimental value to you, such as a favorite vacation spot, a cherished childhood toy, or a meaningful piece of jewelry.
Another option is to explore a strong emotion that you have experienced, like excitement, nostalgia, or determination.

Avoid using overly technical or jargon-filled language in your topic selection. Instead, aim for simplicity and clarity to ensure that your chosen topic resonates with your audience and allows you to convey your unique perspective effectively.

Step 2: Gather Details

Once you've selected your topic for your descriptive essay, the next step is to gather details that will bring your chosen subject to life on the page. Start by closely observing your subject, whether it's a person, place, object, or emotion. Pay attention to its appearance, characteristics, and any unique features that stand out to you.

For example, if you've chosen to describe your childhood home, take note of its architectural style, color scheme, and any distinctive elements like a front porch or a cozy fireplace. Recall memories associated with the home, such as family gatherings or quiet moments spent reading in your favorite spot.

If your topic is a person, like a close friend or family member, observe their physical appearance, mannerisms, and personality traits. Consider the ways in which they interact with others and the impact they have on your life.

Step 3: Draft an Outline

When structuring your essay, you can organize your paragraphs from top to bottom or near to far, chronologically, or from general to specific. Here's a simple descriptive essay outline from our custom writers to guide you:

Section	Description
Introduction	Provide a brief overview of the topic. Present your thesis statement.
Body Paragraph 1	Describe aspect 1 of your topic. Provide supporting details and examples.
Body Paragraph 2	Describe aspect 2 of your topic. Provide supporting details and examples.
Body Paragraph 3	Describe aspect 3 of your topic. Provide supporting details and examples.
Conclusion	Summarize the main points discussed. Offer final thoughts or reflections on the topic.

Step 4: Develop a Thesis Statement

When developing your thesis statement, consider the main points or aspects of your subject that you want to highlight in your essay. Think about the emotions or impressions you want to evoke in the reader and tailor your thesis statement accordingly.

For example, if you're writing about your favorite childhood memory, your thesis statement could be: 'My summers spent at my grandparents' farm were filled with laughter, adventure, and a sense of belonging.'

Or, if you're describing a beautiful sunset, your thesis statement might be: 'The breathtaking colors and serene atmosphere of the sunset over the ocean evoke a sense of peace and wonder.'

Step 5: Craft the Introduction

Start your descriptive essay introduction by hooking the reader with an engaging opening sentence or anecdote related to your topic. This could be a vivid description, a thought-provoking question, or a surprising fact. For example:

Growing up on my grandparents' farm, each summer brought new adventures and unforgettable memories that still warm my heart to this day.

After hooking the reader, provide some background information or context for your topic. This could include brief details about the setting, time period, or significance of your subject. For instance:

Nestled in the rolling hills of the countryside, my grandparents' farm was a sanctuary of simple pleasures and cherished traditions.

Finally, end your introduction with your thesis statement, clearly stating the main point of your essay. This ties everything together and gives the reader a roadmap for what to expect in the rest of your essay.

Step 6: Compose the Body Paragraphs

Once you've crafted your introduction, it's time to compose the body paragraphs, where you delve into the details and descriptions that bring your topic to life.

Each body paragraph should focus on a specific aspect or detail of your topic, expanding upon the ideas presented in your thesis statement. Use vivid language, sensory details, and descriptive devices to paint a clear picture for the reader.

For example, if you're writing about summers spent at your grandparents' farm, you could dedicate one body paragraph to describing the sights and sounds of the farm:

The rolling fields stretched out before me, golden waves of wheat swaying gently in the breeze. The air was filled with the sweet scent of wildflowers, mingling with the earthy aroma of freshly turned soil.

In another body paragraph, you might explore the adventures and activities that filled your days:

From sunrise to sunset, there was never a dull moment on the farm. Whether we were exploring the woods, splashing in the creek, or helping with chores, each day brought new excitement and adventure.

Continue with additional body paragraphs, each focusing on a different aspect of your topic and providing rich, detailed descriptions. Be sure to vary your language and sentence structure to keep the reader engaged and interested.

Step 7: Conclude the Essay

The conclusion should bring together all the ideas presented in your essay. Avoid introducing any new information in the conclusion. Instead, focus on evaluating your thoughts and reflections on the topic. End with a strong final sentence that leaves a lasting impression on the reader.

For example, if you were writing about summers spent at your grandparents' farm, your conclusion might reflect on the significance of those memories:

'As I reminisce about the summers spent amid the rustic charm of my grandparents' farm, I am filled with a profound sense of gratitude for the simple pleasures and cherished moments that shaped my childhood. The laughter echoing through the fields, the adventures awaiting around every corner, and the sense of belonging that enveloped me there will forever hold a special place in my heart.'

Step 8: Refine Your Essay

Once you've finished writing your essay, it's time to refine it for clarity and impact. Start by reading your essay aloud to yourself. Listen for any sentences that sound awkward or unclear. Mark these sentences so you can revise them later.

You can also read your essay aloud to others and ask for their feedback. Invite friends, family members, teachers, or mentors to listen to your essay and share their thoughts. Ask them if there are any parts that are difficult to understand or if they have trouble picturing the subject you're describing.

Be receptive to constructive criticism and feedback. Use it as an opportunity to improve your essay and make it stronger. And if it sounds too demanding right now, you can buy cheap essay to sidestep the hassle and reclaim some much-needed free time.

Descriptive Essay Format

The standard format for a descriptive essay typically includes five paragraphs: an introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, you can also organize your essay into sections, allowing for flexibility in the length of the body paragraphs.

Introductory Paragraph: This paragraph sets the scene by describing where, when, and to whom the experience occurred. It should include descriptive words to capture the reader's attention.

First Body Paragraph: Here, the writer provides details that allow the reader to visualize the situation. Descriptive language is key in painting a clear picture for the reader.

Second Body Paragraph: More details are provided, with a focus on using descriptive adjectives. Figurative language, such as metaphor (e.g., describing the city as a 'jungle of concrete'), can enhance the imagery.

Third Body Paragraph: The writer continues to appeal to the reader's senses with visually descriptive words. Figurative language, like personification (e.g., describing the wind as a playful dancer), adds depth to the description.

Conclusion: The conclusion alludes to another sense, such as touch or sound, and uses strong words to signify closure. It ends with a powerful concluding sentence to leave a lasting impression on the reader.

Descriptive Essay Examples

In this section, you'll discover essay examples that demonstrate how to captivate your readers' attention effectively. After exploring these examples, you might find yourself tempted to ask, 'Can someone do my homework for me?' - and that's completely understandable! We're here to help you become more confident and articulate communicators through your writing!

3 Additional Tips for Writing

While writing a descriptive essay, your goal is to make your subject come alive for the reader. Unlike more formal essays, you have the freedom to be creative with your descriptions, using figurative language, sensory details, and precise word choices to make your writing memorable.

Use Figurative Language: Figurative language, like metaphors and similes, adds flair to your descriptions. Instead of sticking to literal descriptions, use comparisons to create unique and memorable imagery.

For instance, describing a city as a bustling beehive of activity ' or a forest as ' a blanket of whispers ' adds an unexpected twist that captures the reader's attention.

Engage Your Senses: In a descriptive essay, don't just focus on what something looks like; appeal to all the senses. Describe how things smell, sound, feel, and even taste, if applicable. This adds depth and richness to your descriptions, making them more immersive.

For example, instead of just describing a beach visually, include sensory details like feeling the warm sand between your toes , hearing the rhythmic crash of waves , and t asting the salty sea breeze.

Choose Your Words Carefully: Use effective adjectives, verbs, and nouns to convey your impressions vividly. Avoid clichés and opt for original, precise language that reflects your unique perspective. Take the time to review your sentences and consider if there are better word choices that could enhance your description.

In Wrapping Up

To sum it up, descriptive essays are all about encouraging students like you to explore your surroundings and unleash your creativity by describing scenes in detail with words. When you carefully select and organize these descriptive details, it not only enhances your writing but also sharpens your critical thinking skills. Plus, diving into this expressive writing style allows you to appreciate the beauty of language and feel more connected to written communication. And remember, if you ever need a little boost in your writing journey, our descriptive essay writing service is here to help!

Need To Describe Something But DON'T KNOW HOW?

Let one of our essay writers do it for you, all you have to do is send us your paper requirements and wait for your original paper to be written.

How To Write A Descriptive Essay?

What is a descriptive essay, what is the purpose of a descriptive essay.

Daniel Parker

is a seasoned educational writer focusing on scholarship guidance, research papers, and various forms of academic essays including reflective and narrative essays. His expertise also extends to detailed case studies. A scholar with a background in English Literature and Education, Daniel’s work on EssayPro blog aims to support students in achieving academic excellence and securing scholarships. His hobbies include reading classic literature and participating in academic forums.

is an expert in nursing and healthcare, with a strong background in history, law, and literature. Holding advanced degrees in nursing and public health, his analytical approach and comprehensive knowledge help students navigate complex topics. On EssayPro blog, Adam provides insightful articles on everything from historical analysis to the intricacies of healthcare policies. In his downtime, he enjoys historical documentaries and volunteering at local clinics.

New samples
New information on each of the rest sections

Axelrod, R. B. and Cooper, R. C. (2008). The st martin’s guide to writing. (English Edition). New York: Bedford/St Martins

Okono, U. M. (2021). Descriptive essay: An assessment of performance by undergraduates of AkwaIbom State University. Erudite Journal of Linguistics and Languages . https://www.globalacademicstar.com/download/article/descriptive-essay-an-assessment-of-performance-by-undergraduates-of-akwa-ibom-state-university.pdf

Okono. U. M. (2020). “Qualities of a good essay: An assessment of the writings of Nigerian undergraduates.” International Journal on integrated Education. 3: vi.

https://irsc-asc.weebly.com/uploads/3/1/8/1/31813909/e7__descriptive_essay_guidelines.pdf

How to Write a Descriptive Essay

This could be something as simple as your favorite flavor of ice cream or as complicated as the politics of 13th century Vienna. Different than a simple description, a descriptive essay allows the writer to really show off both their imagination as well as their writing skills.

What is a Descriptive Essay?

A descriptive essay is a type of academic writing that asks the writer to fully describe a place, person, situation, event, or thing. They can be simple or they can be very complex depending on the subject matter and audience written for. These types of essays train a writer’s ability to express themselves accurately as well as build compelling sentences and arguments.

Descriptive Essay Ideas

There is no exhaustive list of things that can be described, but these are some of the most common things you may be asked to write about.

A Location - The goal of writing about a place is to make the reader feel as if they are there. Words, similes, and metaphors that ignite the reader’s imagination are essential. Try and immerse the reader in the sights, smells, and sounds of the place you are describing. Examples could be a city, a view, a particular building like your house, etc.

A Time Period - Similar to writing about a location, the goal is to make the reader lose themselves in the time you are describing. This requires great research to be able to describe physical characteristics as authentically and as well as possible. This could include how you felt a year ago, an ancient time period, or the future.

An Event - The goal of describing an event is to explain a series of interesting circumstances. Typical storytelling elements like describing the plot, setting, and characters are useful, but make sure you focus on the chain of events.

An Emotion - The goal of describing an emotion is to make the reader feel the sentiments of the character you are describing. Metaphors and similes are very useful when trying to evoke an emotion in a reader along with physical descriptions that express the emotion.

A Person - The goal of writing about a person is to make the reader understand something about that person. This includes physical descriptions of what they look like, what kind of clothing they wear, a sense of the physical presence along with their profession, as well as how they behave.

Struggling with your Descriptive Essay Homework?

Get your assignments done by real pros. Save your precious time and boost your marks with ease.

Descriptive Essay Outline and Structure

Though a descriptive type of essay is quite different from a typical academic paper, it still follows a classic 5 paragraph format. Always follow any directions though, sometimes you may need more or fewer body paragraphs. This is a general structure you should keep in mind for this type of essay.

Introduction

Introduction/background information

Body Paragraphs

Topic Sentence
Sensory Information
Physical Descriptions
Transition Sentence
Summary of the main points
Restate the thesis

An outline is always a good idea for any kind of writing, but it is particularly useful for this type of essay because it collects your thoughts and makes sure your essay stays on track.

Introduction

Hook - The sting of salty water, the hypnotic crash of the waves, the breathtaking sunsets, the best vacation spot?
Background information - Everyone is different and everyone likes different types of things. When it comes to vacations though, there is a place that almost everyone enjoys.
Thesis - In my opinion, the beach is the best possible vacation spot because of the variety of ways one can enjoy it.

Body Paragraph 1

Topic Sentence - The beach has many kinds of natural beauty
Sensory information - The unlimited expanse of the ocean combined with glorious sunrises and sunsets.
Physical descriptions -The crunch of sand below your bare feet and the crash of waves on your body.
Transition sentence - There’s more than just natural beauty though, there are physical activities to enjoy as well

Body Paragraph 2

Topic Sentence - The beach has unlimited activities for physical enjoyment.
Sensory information - The thrill of battling with the ocean, the joy of falling on the sand, the wind streaming through your hair, and the pleasant tingling of the sun on bare skin.
Physical descriptions - Water sports like surfing, jet skiing, and the like allow you to exercise in one of the most fun ways possible. Not to mention sports like frisbee, volleyball, beach soccer, and more.
Transition sentence - If you just want to relax, the beach is perfect for that too!

Body Paragraph 3

Topic Sentence - The beach is ideal just to relax, destress, and take it easy.
Sensory information - To relax as you are massaged by either human hands or the sun is a pleasure. Lazing around might be frowned upon, but the beach is the ideal place to spend some time taking care of yourself and letting the stresses of the world melt away.
Physical description - Whether it’s reading a book, or enjoying a refreshing beverage with umbrellas in it, you can get taken care of on the beach. Building sandcastles, painting, and meditating are other activities easily and freely enjoyed.
Transition sentence - The beach has so much to offer.
Summary of the main points - Whether it’s nature, physical exercise, or simple relaxation, the beach can offer all of that and more.
Restate the thesis - That’s the main reason that a beach is the ideal vacation spot, it allows for diverse ways of having fun.
Closing statement/Clincher - Think about the last time you went to the beach, don’t you want to go again?

What is the Purpose of a Descriptive Essay?

It should leave the reader with a clear idea of the topic of the essay. The goal is to explain things in a comprehensive and interesting way so that the information stays with the reader. Let’s go into the details of how to accomplish this.

Did you like our inspiring Descriptive Essay Guide?

For more help, tap into our pool of professional writers and get expert essay editing services!

Writing Process & Descriptive Essay Examples

It may seem challenging to write a successful essay of this type, but if you follow the advice below, it will be a breeze.

How to Start a Descriptive Essay

Making sure you choose the right topic is the first hurdle to cross. A topic for a descriptive essay is vital because it is the main subject you will be writing about. Spend at least 20 minutes brainstorming different topic ideas and make sure you choose a topic that you know well.

Next, create an outline to better structure your thoughts and figure out the pieces of information you need to find out more about. The more time you spend creating a well-researched outline, the better your endpaper is going to be, and you’ll end up spending less time on actually writing the paper. Now you can move on the writing the descriptive essay introduction.

How to Write a Descriptive Essay Thesis

A thesis statement is the main argument you are trying to make in your paper. It is the main point you are trying to describe. A good thesis statement for descriptive essay is particular without being too brief. It should include not only just what the topic is, but also mention why the topic is important.

How to Write Body Paragraphs

You can have as many body paragraphs as you think are necessary to achieve the goal of describing something clearly. This means you could have just one body paragraph, the standard three, or more.

Start every paragraph with a topic sentence that explains what the main purpose of the paragraph is. Next fill in sensory details, describing the emotions before moving on to describing the actual physical details. End each body paragraph with a transition sentence that helps each paragraph flow into the other. Not only does this make your writing stronger, but it also helps you create an immersive experience.

How to Write the Conclusion

Summarize the main points of your essay and make sure that you reiterate the thesis statement. This reminds people of the point of your essay and ensures that when writing, you don’t stray too far from the point.

Descriptive Essay Format

There are 3 main formats of citation types for essays. Though the most common one is MLA, it is possible that you may have to use APA or Chicago Style citations.

MLA stands for Modern Language Association and is used primarily for the arts and humanities. MLA uses in-text parenthetical citation in the format of (Author, Page). The page at the end that contains all the sources is called the Works Cited page. The format of these entries is unique to MLA but is easy to make with a citation generator.

APA stands for American Psychological Association and is used mostly for the sciences and social sciences. APA uses in-text parenthetical citations in the format (Author, Date). The page at the end that contains all the sources is called the References section

Chicago Style is used primarily for Business, History, and the Fine Arts. In-text citation can be either as footnotes or parenthetical citation in the format (Author, Date). The page at the end that contains all the sources is called the Bibliography.

Most descriptive essays will follow the MLA style of citation, but if you need any more help, find a guide on Studyfy.com for more information about citation styles in general.

Descriptive Essay Topics

The topic is crucial, because all the research you do, and the entire paper, will specifically be about describing the topic. Here are some descriptive essay prompts to inspire you!

The person you’ve most admired in your life

A movie scene that made you feel strong emotions

The time period you would travel to if you had a time machine

Why a beach is better than the mountains for a vacation (or vice versa)

The taste of a drink when you are incredibly tired

An author that inspired you

Your favorite cuisine

The best place in the world to be by yourself

The best Christmas morning you’ve ever had

An accent that you really enjoy

A time when you wanted something so much it burned

Describe the day in the life of your favorite celebrity

The joy of escaping into a video game

What dancing means to you

A life philosophy you believe in

The feeling of holding a baby in our arms

The sound of crashing waves

Standing in front of a gorgeous view

A vacation that was meaningful

Why fireworks are magical

The first time you cosplayed

How it feels to listen to music that you hate

The best thing you have ever eaten in your life

What would it be like to live 100 years in the future

Why hearing people laugh is beautiful

A day in the life of your favorite animal

A strange superstition you believe in

The strangest person you’ve ever met

Your favorite tv show

Playing your favorite sport

What it’s like to be in love

Descriptive Essay Tips

Before we end, let’s go over some of the key points of information in this article.

Use figurative language including metaphors and similes
Use your senses
Choose appropriate words
Show don't tell
Focus on specific details
Spend time choosing the right topic
Create a detailed outline
Forget about the purpose of the essay
Submit your first draft
Make it too complicated
Ignore your audience
Ignore any directions

In addition to the information provided in this article, there are various resources available to help with your writing needs. If you are struggling to write your descriptive essay, you can turn to professional writers and editors for assistance. You may consider hiring a research paper writing service or seeking help from dissertation writers .

Additionally, if you need someone to " write my admission essay ", there are various options available. You can hire a writer for a custom writing service or seek help from online tutors and teachers. Furthermore, if you need to write a strong admission essay, there are services available that specialize in providing guidance and assistance with this type of writing.

It is important to note that before submitting any work, it should be proofread and edited thoroughly to ensure its quality. Studyfy offers a range of services to help with this, including professional proofreaders and editors who can check your work for grammatical errors and ensure that it meets academic standards.

In summary, there are various resources available to help with your writing needs, including professional writing services, proofreaders, and editors. By utilizing these resources and following the guidelines outlined in this article, you can write a successful descriptive essay that effectively conveys your ideas and engages your readers.If you are looking for the query " I need someone to write an essay for me ", Studyfy has got you covered

Featured Posts

How to write a scholarship essay.

How to Write a Movie Review

How‌ ‌to‌ ‌Write‌ ‌an‌ ‌Argumentative‌ ‌Essay

How to Write a Cause and Effect Essay

How to Write an Expository Essay

How to Write an Analytical Essay

Descriptive Essay

Descriptive Essay Writing

Last updated on: Feb 9, 2023

How To Write An Impactful Descriptive Essay?

By: Cathy A.

12 min read

Reviewed By: Melisa C.

Published on: Dec 17, 2019

Wondering how to write an impressive descriptive essay? Writing a descriptive essay is both fun and challenging. You need to describe the main topic in detail and by engaging the five senses of the readers.

Students usually get this type of essay in high school and college. Writing a descriptive essay is different from other essays.

You need to focus on describing a certain person, place, or event.

Luckily for you, the following blog post will provide some helpful tips on how to create an engaging essay.

Continue reading to learn how to write an A-worthy descriptive essay.

On this Page

What is a Descriptive Essay?

A descriptive essay is a detailed paper that describes a place, person, situation, object, or emotion. Different people have different points of view and your job is to explain yours in detail.

You may be asked to write a descriptive essay about the beach or forest or about a person or situation. The purpose of this essay is to test the writer’s ability in expressing and explaining their experiences.

Descriptive writing should create a picture in the reader’s mind. You may be required to write a descriptive essay as a high school or college essay assignment.

For a compelling essay, using adjectives and adverbs, details, and figurative language is fundamental. Without proper usage of words, you will not be able to invoke the readers' emotions.

What is the Purpose of a Descriptive Essay?

The purpose of a descriptive essay is to describe a person, place, or personal experience in vivid detail so that the reader can create a picture in his mind.

The descriptive essay is written to get the reader to understand by using descriptive language. It is different from narrative essays, where the writer tells the story about someone else. Usually, it starts with a real-life event and then the content follows the author's imagination.

Descriptive essays are not intended to persuade the reader or show facts and figures to prove something. Descriptive essays are like word paintings that contain personal and descriptive details and these are mostly assigned to students of creative writing.

How to Start a Descriptive Essay

A strong start for your descriptive essay is essential. Analyze your topic from every angle and document the following details:

Analyze the main subjects in detail and observe minute things.

Start with observing all the possible aspects of the subject.
Don't just observe the object but also its surroundings.
Focus on details and features of the subject and develop opinions about them.
Be thoughtful; this first step will be the basis for the essay.

Physical Settings

Describing the physical settings is a must in a descriptive essay. When describing, keep the following points in mind.

Focus on the subject's position and observe nearby objects
Note the time of day and kind of lighting: natural or imitated
Physical settings: all the basic and decorative elements
The position and shape of the objects
Alignment and any other observable information

Physical Features

When describing the physical features of the subject, living or nonliving, consider the following points.

Living or nonliving; describe the features in detail
The subject's skin color, texture, smoothness, expression, and age
The features of inanimate objects in the picture, color, surface, and texture

Create Drama

Storytelling and drama are the life and blood of a good descriptive essay. It turns your essay into an exciting and interesting piece of writing. However, be subtle about adding drama to your sentence structure and add it to complement your story only.

Focus On Your Feelings

Focus on how you feel about the particular topic or person and stick to it. It is easy to get involved when working on the essay. But, focus on your own feelings and write an essay based on them.

Use Of Specific Vocabulary

Vocabulary is important. Select the best words for describing an action or object. Don't always use the first word that comes to mind.

Write slowly and thoughtfully, and use specific words to convey your thoughts.

Psychological Aspects

Writing about a certain situation or behavior of a person focuses on the mental aspects and emotions involved in them.

For Example, describe your emotions when your friend misplaced your notes right before the exam.

You may have had several emotions in that incident. Maybe you were prepared for exams, but this situation put you under pressure and made you feel frustrated and hurt.

Explore those emotions and describe the feelings they aroused. Describe the body language also, if relevant.

Ask Yourself, WHY?

This is the most valuable tip for students. When you are looking at a particular subject, and having difficulty analyzing its aspects, ask yourself "WHY".

Why is the subject the way it is?
Why does the person you are describing have such a deep-set and cold eyes?
Why is the animal so wounded and terrified?
Why is this particular place famous?

It is a good practice and after some time you will do it naturally. Knowing the why is important if you want to describe your topic properly.

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That's our Job!

How To Write A Descriptive Essay?

When you write a descriptive essay, you help your readers visualize an event, a person, or a story. It is written to make your readers feel what you feel about the respective subject.

A descriptive essay seeks to appeal to some or all of the audience’s five senses. Some key things to consider are:

Discussing your subject thoroughly
Focusing on details and adding them in your essay
Sharing your personal feelings and experience about the subject
Observing and describing all sensory details of your subject

Here are the steps to write a descriptive essay easily.

1- Choose an Engaging and Focused Essay Topic

An important step that all strong descriptive essays share is having a focused topic. Before you make the outline, identify the purpose of your essay and use it to create an appropriate thesis statement.This type of paper does not require much personal opinion from you. Its main goal should be focusing on information that will make a dominant impression in readers' minds instead.

2- Research and Gather Important Details

When writing a descriptive essay, it is important to make sure you include as many details and sensory information as possible. This helps your reader fully understand the images that are being presented in their mind's eye.You can organize these ideas into categories so they're easy for you to access when needed.

3- Create an Outline of Your Essay

Your essays must be organized by having subheadings that are clear and concise. Group your main points into individual body paragraphs, each of which should only cover one idea or topic at a time.

4- Write your Essay’s Introduction

A good introductory paragraph is much like a road map because it provides direction to your readers.

It provides relevant background information before diving into more specific details related to how something works or why something happens. These could include statistics or stories from real-life scenarios.

5- Write the Main Body Section of Your Essay

Each body paragraph should start with a topic sentence that keeps the reader hooked on what you are saying. Use specific details instead of making generalized statements, and make sure to give examples if necessary.

6- End with a Strong Conclusion

The conclusion of an essay is the final paragraph, and it should summarize all that you have said throughout. It's a good idea to restate the main points and key details from the essay in this section.

It is important so the reader has everything they need for better understanding before ending off on something new.

If necessary be sure not to introduce anything odd or unusual, to avoid any confusion.

7- Proofread and Revise the Essay Carefully

Once you are done writing the essay, proofread and revise it carefully. Make sure that it is free from all kinds of errors.

Descriptive Essay Outline

Like all the other essays, a descriptive essay also follows the usual 5-paragraph essay structure and format.Before starting, it is important to create an outline. Following are the fundamental elements of your descriptive essay outline:

Descriptive Essay Introduction

The introduction sets the footing for the entire essay. Before heading towards the body section, the reader will come across the introduction.

It is the first impression of your work. It is very important to write an engaging introduction so that the readers read the essay till the end.

Start the essay in an easy-to-understand way and language. Provide background information on your topic so they can understand it and its importance.

To make sure the reader feels your emotions and decides to continue reading further, incorporate the following points in your introduction.

The following tips will guide you on how to write a good introduction for a descriptive essay.

Attract the reader's attention with an interesting fact, phrase, or quote
Don't bombard them with information
Go straight to the main pointsInclude enough information to introduce the topic and its significance.
Summarize the argument and the main topic and craft your thesis statement

Descriptive Essay Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is an integral part of your essay. It focuses on the argument and the writer’s main idea, which is to be discussed in the essay.

This statement also provides the writer with a chance of explaining the purpose and scope of the topic. It is intriguing and engaging.

A thesis statement is written at the end of the introduction, it is mainly a single sentence that describes the essay objective. The thesis statement should act as a guide to the reader on what to expect in the essay body. It is like a table of contents of a book, to the reader on contents you will get an idea of what the book is all about so you get to understand it better.

It is like a table of contents of a book. By reading it, you will get an idea of what the book is all about.

A good thesis should contain the following things:

Define the essay scope - it should narrow down all the points to clarify its purpose.
Avoid using common words - you should be creative with your choice of words.
Create suspense - it should attract the reader to the body paragraphs of the essay.

For further information on how to write a thesis for a descriptive essay, check out the following examples.

Descriptive essay example about a Place

“Even though monarchy is long gone, Buckingham Palace is here to remind us of the aesthetic beauty of that era.”

Descriptive essay example about a Person

“One of the characteristics of Spider-Man is his youthfulness, and the fact that he talks to himself more than Hamlet.”

Descriptive essay example about an Emotion

“For numerous reasons, the dark forest is my greatest fear, though not a fear which is necessarily smart to face.”

Descriptive Essay Body Paragraphs

Body paragraphs of the essay come next after the introduction and thesis statement. It is the main part that continues your essay.

Usually, an essay consists of three body paragraphs but you can add more if needed.

Don't add more than one central idea in one paragraph. Fusing different ideas will confuse the reader.

Build your paragraphs according to the thesis and introduction.

Start each body paragraph with the main sentence
Use transitions to move between paragraphs smoothly
Each paragraph should be five to six sentences long

Descriptive Essay Conclusion

The concluding paragraph is the last part of an essay, and probably your last chance to impress your reader.

The last part that the reader can keep in mind is the conclusion, which is as important as the rest of the essay.

To make it interesting and thought-provoking, include the following points:

Restate the thesis statement
Summarize the main points
Add an intriguing closing statement

After writing the conclusion, make a review of your essay, identify the mistakes and maintain a good tone throughout the essay.

Descriptive Essay Format Sample

Here is the descriptive essay format to help you understand how you can write a winning descriptive essay.

DESCRIPTIVE ESSAY FORMAT (PDF)

Tough Essay Due? Hire Tough Writers!

Descriptive Essay Topics Ideas

Descriptive essay topics are often related to physical settings, locations, living beings, and objects.

Make sure that your essay includes the five senses, touch, taste, smell, sight, hearing, or at least one of them. It depends on the topic and the kind of feeling that you want to arouse.

Below are some descriptive essay ideas and ways to achieve them.

Living Beings

When you want to write about a person like a family member, consider the following elements:

Gender, age, complexion, and expressions
Physical features
Height, body type, and approximate weight
Kind of clothes

These details will add depth to the description and your readers will actually see your narrative.

When animals are the subject, you can add the above points plus the following details:

Species and animal
Size, weight, color
Behavior patterns
Temperament
Trained or wild?
Real or fictional?

Inanimate Subjects

Geographic locations and structures.

When your subject is a place or a building, add the following points:

Research about the place and its historical background
The color and the building's type
A famous place or landmark to draw a comparison and inspire interest

Human behavior and psychology is a compelling descriptive essay subject. When writing about it:

Describe the consequences of a particular behavior
Discuss the emotional dimension of the topic and how you perceive it personally

Event Or Travel Experience

A travel experience makes a good descriptive essay since you have experienced the event first hand.

Give a detailed description of the place, people at the venue, and the atmosphere of the location.

Idea, Concept, or Occupation

When writing on such topics, focus on how an idea or concept affects society and its different aspects.

Example Descriptive Essay Topics for Students

Choosing a topic for your descriptive essay is quite interesting. You get to choose something that you have an emotional connection with.

When writing a descriptive essay about a person or place, adding their personal traits will be helpful.

Some examples of descriptive essay topics include:

Compose a detailed descriptive essay about your best friend.
Describe a fancy place that you have created.
Describe your dream vacation destination.
Describe your favorite mall or store.
Describe your childhood home.
Descriptive essay about nature.
Descriptive essay about a place you visited.
Describe the personality of your Maths teacher.
Discuss the main characters of your favorite movie.
Descriptive essay about chocolate.
Write an essay using unique Words to describe yourself.
What makes me unique?
My first love.

Descriptive Essay Examples

Study these descriptive essay examples and sample papers to understand the main idea, structure, and purpose of descriptive essays.

DESCRIPTIVE ESSAY ON MARKET (PDF)

DESCRIPTIVE ESSAY EXAMPLE PERSON (PDF)

To help you understand how to write a great descriptive essay, we have a whole blog post dedicated to it. We know that talking about something is one thing and demonstrating it is completely different.

Having a descriptive essay assignment with a short deadline? Looking for someone to do my essay for me ?

5StarEssays.com academic writing professionals are ready to help you. They read the essay details before writing and make sure that they incorporate all the details in it.

Get 100% plagiarism-free content at affordable prices from our experts now!

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the features of a descriptive essay.

A descriptive essay provides a perfect opportunity for writers to express their feelings on any subject. Descriptive writing has rich sensory details which appeal to all of your senses.

How do you start a descriptive essay introduction?

The introduction to the descriptive essay should set the scene and introduce the main topic. You can use these sensory details to get a sense of what the essay is all about.

What are the two types of descriptive essays?

There are two types of descriptive essays. The first type deals with people, and the second one is about objects.

What are the elements of a descriptive essay?

Here are the key elements of a descriptive essay.

Sensory details
Figurative language
Central and main theme
Precise and clear language
Proper organization of ideas

What makes good descriptive writing?

Good and effective descriptive writing consists of vivid sensory details that appeal to all senses including the sense of sight, smell, touch, hearing, and taste. Moreover, these essays also explain people’s feelings in writing.

Finance Essay, Literature

Cathy has been been working as an author on our platform for over five years now. She has a Masters degree in mass communication and is well-versed in the art of writing. Cathy is a professional who takes her work seriously and is widely appreciated by clients for her excellent writing skills.

Was This Blog Helpful?

Keep reading.

Interesting Descriptive Essay Topics Recommended by Experts

Descriptive Essay Examples - 8 Examples To Help You Write Better

How to Write a Strong Descriptive Essay

Last Updated: June 24, 2024 Fact Checked

Brainstorming Ideas for the Essay

Writing the essay, polishing the essay, outline for a descriptive essay, expert q&a.

This article was co-authored by Jake Adams . Jake Adams is an academic tutor and the owner of Simplifi EDU, a Santa Monica, California based online tutoring business offering learning resources and online tutors for academic subjects K-College, SAT & ACT prep, and college admissions applications. With over 14 years of professional tutoring experience, Jake is dedicated to providing his clients the very best online tutoring experience and access to a network of excellent undergraduate and graduate-level tutors from top colleges all over the nation. Jake holds a BS in International Business and Marketing from Pepperdine University. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 1,530,476 times.

A good descriptive essay creates a vivid picture of the topic in the reader’s mind. You may need to write a descriptive essay as a class assignment or you may decide to write one as a fun writing challenge. Start by brainstorming ideas for the essay. Then, outline and write the essay using vivid sensory details and strong descriptions. Always polish your essay and proofread it so it is at its best.

Best Tips for Writing a Descriptive Essay

Outline the essay in sections and create a thesis statement to base the essay on. Then, write a strong introduction and describe the subject matter using creative and vivid adjectives. Use similes, metaphors, and your own emotions to help you bring the topic to life.

You could also choose a fictional person to write about, such as a character in a book, a story, or a play. You could write about a character on your favorite TV show or video game.

Step 2 Pick a place or object to describe.

Another take on this option is to write about a made-up place or object, such as the fantastical school in your favorite book or the magic wand from your favorite TV show.

You could also choose a more specific emotion, such as brotherly love or self-hatred. These emotions can make for powerful descriptive essays.

Step 4 Make a list of sensory details about the topic.

For example, if you were writing about a person like your mother, you may write down under “sound” : “soft voice at night, clack of her shoes on the floor tiles, bang of the spoon when she cooks.”

If you are writing the essay for a class, your instructor should specify if they want a five paragraph essay or if you have the freedom to use sections instead.

For example, if you were writing a descriptive essay about your mother, you may have a thesis statement like: “In many ways, my mother is the reigning queen of our house, full of contradictions that we are too afraid to question.”

For example, if you were writing the essay about your mom, you may start with: “My mother is not like other mothers. She is a fierce protector and a mysterious woman to my sisters and I.”
If you were writing an essay about an object, you may start with: "Try as I might, I had a hard time keeping my pet rock alive."

Step 4 Describe the topic with vivid adjectives.

You can also use adjectives that connect to the senses, such “rotting,” “bright,” “hefty,” “rough,” and “pungent.”
For example, you may describe your mother as "bright," "tough," and "scented with jasmine."

You can also use similes, where you use “like” or “as” to compare one thing to another. For example, you may write, “My mother is like a fierce warrior in battle, if the battlefield were PTA meetings and the checkout line at the grocery store.”

Step 6 Discuss your emotions and thoughts about the topic.

For example, you may write about your complicated feelings about your mother. You may note that you feel sadness about your mother’s sacrifices for the family and joy for the privileges you have in your life because of her.

Step 7 Wrap up the essay with a strong conclusion.

For example, you may end a descriptive essay about your mother by noting, “In all that she has sacrificed for us, I see her strength, courage, and fierce love for her family, traits I hope to emulate in my own life.”

You can also read the essay aloud to others to get their feedback. Ask them to let you know if there are any unclear or vague sentences in the essay.

Be open to constructive criticism and feedback from others. This will only make your essay stronger.

Step 3 Revise the essay for clarity and length.

If you have a word count requirement for the essay, make sure you meet it. Add more detail to the paper or take unnecessary content out to reach the word count.

Reader Videos

Share a quick video tip and help bring articles to life with your friendly advice. Your insights could make a real difference and help millions of people!

Tips from our Readers

Start your essay with an attention-grabbing introduction that gives a good sense of the topic.
Make sure to check your spelling and grammar when you're done!

↑ https://www.writeexpress.com/descriptive-essay.html
↑ Jake Adams. Academic Tutor & Test Prep Specialist. Expert Interview. 24 July 2020.
↑ https://www.iup.edu/writingcenter/writing-resources/organization-and-structure/descriptive-writing.html
↑ https://spcollege.libguides.com/ld.php?content_id=10168248
↑ https://www.butte.edu/departments/cas/tipsheets/style_purpose_strategy/descriptive_essay.html
↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/descriptive_essays.html

About This Article

To write a descriptive essay, start by choosing a topic, like a person, place, or specific emotion. Next, write down a list of sensory details about the topic, like how it sounds, smells, and feels. After this brainstorming session, outline the essay, dividing it into an introduction, 3 body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Open with a vivid introduction that uses sensory details, then introduce your thesis statement, which the rest of your essay should support. Strengthen your essay further by using metaphors and similes to describe your topic, and the emotions it evokes. To learn how to put the finishing touches on your essay, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No

Send fan mail to authors

Reader Success Stories

Joshua Aigbe

Mar 25, 2021

Did this article help you?

Subaa Subaavarshini

Jul 13, 2020

Daniel Karibi

May 13, 2021

Aug 21, 2019

Kelly Johnson

Apr 11, 2019

Featured Articles

Watch Articles

Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Do Not Sell or Share My Info
Not Selling Info

wikiHow Tech Help Pro:

Develop the tech skills you need for work and life

How To Write A Descriptive Essay?

26 April, 2020

11 minutes read

Author: Tomas White

Descriptive essay is one of the hardest forms of writing. To master descriptive writing, you must be creative and craft a scene that all readers can picture with words alone. This freedom and creativity can make it one of the most rewarding and fun essays to write. It is the backbone of all artful writing like poetry, novels, and even television scripts. We prepared this guide for You to learn all you need to know about descriptive writing. Let's start!

What is a Descriptive Essay?

The goal of a descriptive essay is simple, choose a subject and describe it. The subject could be anything:

A descriptive essay is all about describing the subject in great detail. Being a type of expository writing , it gives you great freedom to paint a picture with your words, shares a once in a lifetime event with the reader or makes them feel something. It is better to choose a descriptive essay topic that has lots of qualities to discuss for example a person might have a more interesting feature to describe than a paper towel. Choose a subject you connect with emotionally or have a personal history with. The best descriptions come from retelling an experience.

The Difference Between Descriptive and Narrative Essays

The main difference between descriptive and narrative essays lies in the structure and purpose of the essay. A descriptive essay is used to describe a subject to present a clear picture of it. As such, it only requires you to describe the item in a logic fashion. A narrative essay’s purpose is to tell a story. As such, it requires a plot and logical progression to an outcome. A person’s face can be the subject of a descriptive essay. But it would be hard to write a narrative piece that follows the person’s face as the central plot of a story.

Showing VS Telling

A descriptive essay values details over facts. This is also known as showing vs. telling. To show something is to describe using the five senses, how it looks, how it smells, how it tastes, how it feels and how it sounds. Imagine the reader as an alien, who has never experienced the subject for themselves. How would you describe it then?

To give you an understanding of how to differentiate between showing and telling I’ll write an example of a descriptive paper that describes my favorite place.

The above example tells you, as it doesn’t evoke any of your senses. It is a senseless description . It’s vague and hard to imagine.

This description is more detail and easier to imagine because of the following changes:

The choice of words like ‘haven’ instead of ‘like’ add a showing element as it is showing in what way I like the library.
Putting describers before items like ‘brightly colored’ books makes it easier to see.
And choosing words with more like ‘towering’ instead of ‘tall’ makes the description less full.
The description of the books shows what they do, not what they are. These are important points to consider when writing a descriptive essay.

A good exercise for descriptive writing and is to read descriptive essay examples and pick out the words that do the four points outlined above. Analyzing other’s descriptive writing will make your own descriptive work stronger. Can you pick out another place in the descriptive essay example above where those four changes occur and what it lends to the description?

Still having problems with your descriptive paper? All you need is to request help from our top-notch essay writing service and our essay writer make it for you !

How to Choose a Descriptive Essay Topic?

When deciding what to highlight about your topic, take a step back and look at what draws you to it. A campfire has bright, flickering colors, a satisfying crackling sound, and a sort of flow as it moves from the bottom to the tip of the flame. Place yourself in proximity to the subject and describe the parts that stimulate your senses the most.

Title Examples of Descriptive Essays

Here are some examples of descriptive essay topics that are fun to write:

Pick something you can see right now and think about how you’d describe that.

Related Posts: Argumentative essay topics | Compare&Contrast essay topics

How to Set Up a Proper Description?

Slow down and think about what you want to invoke. Don’t rush into a description or you’ll likely end up with something weaker than you could have. Take your topic aside and write some sentences describing how it charms each sense – the five senses being:

Keep a thesaurus on hand to switch some of the more basic words out. If you can read your paragraph back and vividly imagine the item you’ve described, you’ve done it.

How to write a Descriptive Essay Outline

Starting your descriptive essay without a plan can lead to a messy and sprawling description. Learning to outline your ideas is just as important as knowing how to write them.

Related Posts: How to write an Essay outline | How to write an Essay introduction

Creating an Introduction for a Descriptive Writing

Once you have chosen the subject to write you need to plan the introduction for your descriptive paper. An introduction needs to include a thesis statement and three features of the thing you are describing. The introduction should start with a thesis statement that states how you feel about your topic. This should then be supported with three qualities defining those feelings.

These thesis statements aren’t meant to be complex. All they’re meant to do is to set up your reader for your descriptions. It is important to include three reasons that you can expand on describe in great detail as they will form the paragraphs of your descriptive paper.

Planning and Writing the Body of a Descriptive Essay

Looking at your thesis statement, take those three reasons and break them down into their own paragraphs. Describe hanging out with your friends at the beach, talk about the food you’d eat, the activities you’d participate in. Detail what huskies do when they’re energetic, what shows that they get along with other dogs?

It helps to write about each way you can describe an item on a separate sheet of paper. Use that sheet as your descriptive essay outline. Take each item and write what sense you can use to describe the item in each paragraph.

For example, if you want to talk about eating a popsicle on the beach you could include how cold against your tongue for touch, that it smelt and tasted like raspberries, it was a bright red, and shaped like a rocket for sight, and the sound you made it as you bit on it, or the sound you made as it rocketed into your mouth. Expand this into a paragraph keeping the most vivid description.

Force your reader to imagine these objects in their head. Help them visualize it, pour your vision into the paper and focus on both the small and the big details. Just don’t go overboard. It’s important to have a few great descriptors rather than a ton of average ones.

When describing an object, go about it in a practical sense. Don’t just throw details on the page, talk about them in order. Describe a mountain from its peak to it’s middle all the way down to its base. You wouldn’t go from the middle to the base to the peak, would you? This way, you’re keeping your reader engaged with the topic.

Concluding a Descriptive Essay

Concluding descriptive writing is easy. All you have to show why the subject you described is important to you. All you have to do is show the reader what you implied. Show why it has meaning, and why they should care.

Descriptive Essay Example

Drafting your essay.

Make sure that your essay responds to these questions

Where the organization comes to fruition. When writing your essay, keep the reader in your head at all times. Constantly as yourself: “Is this vivid enough?” Don’t focus much on grammar, get the content onto the paper.

Questions to Ask Yourself

Once you’ve finished writing your essay, read it back and make sure it responds positively to each of these questions:

Are these descriptions making my writing visual? Could I make them more vivid?
Have I used these descriptions to detail my emotions to the reader?
Do these descriptions convey each of the five senses?
Have I gone into enough details in each paragraph?
Are my descriptions in an orderly fashion?

If you believe your essay fits these criteria, then you’re good to go on the content side.

Perfecting the Essay

Read it through a couple more times. Take some time away from it and then come back with a fresh mindset. Correct any grammar issues you see, and double check that it answers all of the questions mentioned above. Once that’s done, you’ll have an essay worthy of an A+ grade.

From Our Writers: Tips on How to Write a Good Descriptive Essay

Be sensitive. Some writers are scared to show their true selves, but the point of a descriptive essay is to talk about how an object affects your senses and emotions. Keep this in mind during all stages of the essay.
Put effort into unique descriptions. Don’t settle for standard words, spend some time searching out alternatives to common descriptive words. It will only help the reader envision your thoughts.
Write about something that you care about. If you choose something you don’t have much personal experience with, you can’t truly write from the heart.

A life lesson in Romeo and Juliet taught by death

Due to human nature, we draw conclusions only when life gives us a lesson since the experience of others is not so effective and powerful. Therefore, when analyzing and sorting out common problems we face, we may trace a parallel with well-known book characters or real historical figures. Moreover, we often compare our situations with […]

Ethical Research Paper Topics

Writing a research paper on ethics is not an easy task, especially if you do not possess excellent writing skills and do not like to contemplate controversial questions. But an ethics course is obligatory in all higher education institutions, and students have to look for a way out and be creative. When you find an […]

Art Research Paper Topics

Students obtaining degrees in fine art and art & design programs most commonly need to write a paper on art topics. However, this subject is becoming more popular in educational institutions for expanding students’ horizons. Thus, both groups of receivers of education: those who are into arts and those who only get acquainted with art […]

Best Descriptive Essays: Examples & How-to Guide [+ Tips]

A descriptive essay is an academic paper that challenges a school or college student to describe something. It can be a person, a place, an object, a situation—anything an individual can depict in writing. The task is to show your abilities to communicate an experience in an essay format using vivid, illustrative language.

To understand how to write this paper, you’ll need to study some descriptive essay examples for college. Besides, you need to contemplate these aspects:

how someone or somewhere looks;
what happens with the person or place;
what historical record you can add, if at all possible.

Our team has prepared this guide so that you’ll manage to write a famous descriptive essay. Learn how to outline your paper, nail the structure and the thesis statement. See the tips and explanations below, along with descriptive essay samples.

🖌️ Why Descriptive?

Research & Prepare

Outline your essay, write descriptively, revise & polish.

🖼️ Essay Examples

🖌️ What Makes an Essay Descriptive?

It’s time to make clear what we mean by a descriptive essay . For example, let’s suppose we were asked to write about a sports stadium. Here are two introductions we might come up with:

Example 1: A stadium is a place where sports, concerts, or other events take place. Usually, there will be a field or a stage, which most often will be surrounded completely or partially by a structure where spectators can sit or stand to watch.

Example 2: American sports nuts got what was probably their first sight of Twickenham rugby stadium when the Rugby World Cup Final was played there in 2015. Rugby has been played at Whitton Road in Twickenham since 1907, and the first international match took place three years later in 1910; when no game was scheduled, horses grazed the pitch. What is now the shining steel and glass double-decker West Stand was still, in the 1960s, a car park. Currently one of the world’s most state-of-the-art grounds, Twickenham holds 82,000 people, and it’s no longer horses when rugby is not being played but world-famous bands like U2, The Rolling Stones, and Bon Jovi who fill the place.

The first introduction is excellent for analytical essays as it’s a definition of what a sports stadium is. The second one depicts a specific stadium, and that – that act of describing – is what makes it descriptive.

When you’re writing a descriptive essay, it’s the style of the second example and not the first that you should be striving for. Try to use living, vivid language to draw a picture in words of whatever it is you’re writing about.

🎨 How to Write Good Descriptive Essays

When you’re writing a paper, the standard advice would be:

Say what you’re going to tell your reader.
Say what you’ve told your reader.

The same fundamental structure applies to a descriptive essay. Yet, there are numerous nuances that you should keep in mind to produce an outstanding paper. In the following sections, we’ll elaborate on them in detail.

So, you are ready to write your excellent descriptive essay, but you don’t know how to start? Don’t be lost. While writing any kind of paper, start with the research and preparation. Take a look at our tips!

Consider the topic that you’re working with. Whether it’s assigned or picked by you, make sure you understand it completely. Make sure that it’s a descriptive essay that you’re supposed to write.
Have a brainstorming session. Jot down some notes on what you think about the matter. Some of them will be useless, but it’s okay: among all the ideas, you’ll find something useful for your paper.
Do some research. Find out what other people think about the place or event, if possible. Make notes about essential historical facts and people’s opinions.
Add details. A good descriptive essay should be full of specifics. So, include background information, dates, names, physical characteristics, etc. This trick will help the reader to dive deep into the story and get the idea better.
Are you going to go with your perspective?
Are you going to go with other people’s opinions?
Would the best result for this particular essay come from weighing the options? (So, you’d write, “Some people think this and some people believe in that ).

After all these steps, you’ll have enough material to create your descriptive essay structure.

When you have enough facts and memories, you can move on to the next step – outlining. We highly recommend you create an outline before you start writing an essay. It will help you to structure your ideas logically and coherently.

Your essay outline should include the following elements:

Introduction . A good introduction should be catchy and concise. Start with the hook—an attention-grabbing element (rhetorical question, joke, statistics, etc.). Then, provide the general background and highlight the issues your essay will cover. End your intro with a clear thesis statement—a sentence that reflects your position.
Body paragraphs . Each body paragraph should contain only one idea and start from the topic sentence, so the reader knows what to focus on. Make your body paragraphs full of details and specific examples. Don’t be too general because you risk losing the reader’s attention very fast.
Conclusion . Wrap up your essay by restating the main points and summarizing your key ideas. Don’t include any new facts in the last paragraph. If you suspect that you miss an essential argument, better add it in the body.

Besides having a good structure, the best descriptive essay should be composed of strong and dynamic words. In this section, we will explain how to make your paper illustrative and memorable.

To make your writing descriptive , try the following:

Choose your POV.

Decide who is the narrator of your story and filter the vocabulary through the narrator’s perspective. For example, you are describing your memories of childhood. Thus, your character is a child. Think how the kid’s perception of the world differs from reality and try to convey the feelings using appropriate words. Note that you can still write in the third person.

Rely on precise words.

Avoid too abstract terms and general words. Instead, use dynamic vocabulary that precisely conveys your feelings. For example, you might write, “I felt bad.” Let’s make it more specific! How about writing, “I felt exhausted/ horrified/ anxious/ sick/ stressed, etc.”?

Use figures of speech.

Don’t forget about the wide variety of literary devices! Use comparisons, metaphors, onomatopoeia, or exaggeration. You might say, “my girlfriend has beautiful eyes.” But Shakspeare would say. “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun” ( Sonnet, 130 ). Strive to be this creative!

Keep connotations and variations in mind.

Use the richness of the language to improve your creative writing skills. English is full of synonyms and various grammar structures. Take the maximum benefit from them. BUT! Avoid using the word if you are unsure about its meaning.

Compare and contrast.

Nothing can help to describe things better than comparison. So, deepen your sentences by examining the contrast and similarities between the objects or emotions.

Implement sensory details.

Do you remember the five basic human senses? They are sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell. Rather than just telling the story, try to appeal to the reader’s five senses. This trick will help you to make the audience more engaged in your narrative.

When you reach the end, you haven’t finished. What you’ve done is to create the first version of your descriptive essay. Professional writers know how vital the first draft is because it isn’t possible to edit a blank page.

To revise and polish your text, follow these steps:

Check the structure. Your essay has to contain all the fundamental parts (introduction, main body, conclusion). Also, make sure that there are transitions between the key points and topic sentences at the beginning of each paragraph.
Check the balance. All the essay parts should be approximate of the same significance. Keep in mind that each point should have the same number of details and arguments.
Make sure you explored all the points. Read your introduction, paying extra attention to the thesis statement. Then, look through the entire essay and check whether you discussed every aspect you introduced in the first paragraph.
Examine your information. Every piece of data and detail has to be valid. Make sure your arguments are logical, and your examples are appropriate. If something seems weak, rewrite it or consider cutting that part down.
Polish your conclusion. The last paragraph of your essay should correspond to the introduction. Moreover, it should summarize your points and make a final impression on the reader. Make your conclusion memorable and dynamic.

You may go through this revision and rewriting process several times. Or you may become so skilled at writing descriptive essays that you’re good to go after the first revision.

🖼️ Famous Descriptive Essay Examples

Now that we’ve discussed how to write a descriptive essay, we should tell you the last crucial tip. Your chances of composing a perfect paper are low when you don’t check the samples first.

Here, you can find specific descriptive essay examples in these guides:

Coral Reef Essay :

Do you admire wildlife? Are you fascinated by the divine beauty of the sea and ocean creatures? If you have a task to write about nature, or you can choose the topic yourself, think about composing a descriptive essay about coral reefs!

Harriet Tubman Essay :

Do you need to talk about an outstanding historical figure? Or you need to compose a descriptive essay about a person? Choose an American political activist Harriet Tubman. Her biography and achievements won’t leave you indifferent!

Americanism Essay :

Americanism is one of the most common paper topics for college students in the U.S. Has your instructor gave you the assignment to write about the USA identity? Compose a descriptive essay on Americanism!

Halloween Essay :

Everybody loves holidays! And the teachers like to give the tasks to write about them. If you are wondering what celebration to select, consider choosing Halloween. It offers a bunch of traditions to describe.

Descriptive Essay Topics

Description of punk culture.
The beauty of Dresden.
Give a description of Sweetbay Magnolia ornamental tree.
Memorable design of Apple Company’s logo.
Representation of emotions while viewing art or nature.
Describe the Paricutín volcano .
Give a description of Diana Krall’s concert at Jazz Festival in San Sebastián.
Compare the interior and exterior of the Palatine Chapel and St. Michael’s Chapel.
Discuss the design principles and visual elements of the Baptistery of San Giovanni’s south doors.
The unusual style of the Graduate House of the University of Toronto.
The description of the Jewish religious service.
The magnificence of the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
The overview of my dream car .
Discuss the design of Britam Tower in Nairobi.
An exceptional scenery of the Lake Geneva, Switzerland.
Description and analysis of the film The Joker .
The day I was buying a laptop .
Give a description of main types of friendship .
Main holidays in Pakistan and how they are celebrated.
The historical atmosphere of Ellis Island.
The unique culture of Cook Island inhabitants.
Describe the impressions of the picture.
Describe traditions and culture of the Kootenai Indians.
What does my dream home look like?
Discuss the visual elements of Lady Sennuwy statue .
Balinese wedding ceremonies and traditions.
Recount your first day at college .
Describe and analyze Susan Anthony’s life and achievements .
The unique beauty of the Amazon rainforest .
The important elements of the Haitian flag.
Values and specifics of Brazilian culture .
The magnificence of Shark Valley.
Describe the activities and personality of Eleanor Roosevelt.
Describe the writing process.
The peculiarities of a tapa and it’s role in cultural ceremonies.
Give the description of the statue of Osiris-Antinous.
Discuss the Ways of Christmas Sweater Day celebration.
What impresses you the most in Cézanne’s art.
Description of Atlantis Paradise Island site .
Describe the peculiarities of your favorite music.
Analyze the characteristics of contemporary design in Evolution Queen Wall Bed.
Movements, symbolism, and transformation of the Chinese Dragon Dance and Lion Dance.
Describe the falling in love process.
Narrate about your first try to ride a bicycle .
Representation of the ancient Greek design: the marble column from the Temple of Artemis at Sardis.
Discuss the thematic elements of Indian Fire God painting by Frederic Remington.
The personality and art of Tracey Emin.
Describe the history of PayPal company.
Describe the features and historical meaning of the Column of Trajan.
Overview of the painting Toy Pieta by Scott Avett.

In case these ideas aren’t for you, you can find more descriptive essay topics on our website.

Thanks for visiting our page! Share it with your friends and explore the other articles on our website. We have more useful information for you.

🔗 References

Descriptive Writing, Organization and Structure: Writing Center, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Examples of How to Write a Good Descriptive Paragraph: Richard Nordquist, ThoughtCo
How Can I Write More Descriptively: Sweetland Center for Writing, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, the University of Michigan
Revising the Draft: Laura Saltz, the Writing Center at Harvard University
Descriptive Essays: Purdue Writing Lab, College of Liberal Arts, Purdue University
Paragraph Development, Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper: Research Guides at the University of Southern California
Share to Facebook
Share to LinkedIn
Share to email

How to Write a Film Analysis Essay: Examples, Outline, & Tips

A film analysis essay might be the most exciting assignment you have ever had! After all, who doesn’t love watching movies? You have your favorite movies, maybe something you watched years ago, perhaps a classic, or a documentary. Or your professor might assign a film for you to make a...

How to Write a Critique Paper: Format, Tips, & Critique Essay Examples

A critique paper is an academic writing genre that summarizes and gives a critical evaluation of a concept or work. Or, to put it simply, it is no more than a summary and a critical analysis of a specific issue. This type of writing aims to evaluate the impact of...

How to Write a Creative Essay: Tips, Topics, and Techniques

What is a creative essay, if not the way to express yourself? Crafting such a paper is a task that allows you to communicate your opinion and tell a story. However, even using your imagination to a great extent doesn’t free you from following academic writing rules. Don’t even get...

Compare and Contrast Essay Writing Tips and Examples

A compare and contrast essay — what is it? In this type of paper, you compare two different things or ideas, highlighting what is similar between the two, and you also contrast them, highlighting what is different. The two things might be events, people, books, points of view, lifestyles, or...

How to Write an Expository Essay: Outline, & Example

What is an expository essay? This type of writing aims to inform the reader about the subject clearly, concisely, and objectively. The keyword here is “inform”. You are not trying to persuade your reader to think a certain way or let your own opinions and emotions cloud your work. Just stick to the...

Short Story Analysis: How to Write It Step by Step [New]

Have you ever tried to write a story analysis but ended up being completely confused and lost? Well, the task might be challenging if you don’t know the essential rules for literary analysis creation. But don’t get frustrated! We know how to write a short story analysis, and we are...

How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Step-by-Step Guide + Examples

Have you ever tried to get somebody round to your way of thinking? Then you should know how daunting the task is. Still, if your persuasion is successful, the result is emotionally rewarding. A persuasive essay is a type of writing that uses facts and logic to argument and substantiate...

Common Essay Mistakes—Writing Errors to Avoid [Updated]

One of the most critical skills that students gain during their college years is assignment writing. Composing impressive essays and research papers can be quite challenging, especially for ESL students. Nonetheless, before learning the art of academic writing, you may make numerous common essay mistakes. Such involuntary errors appear in:...

How to Start an Autobiography about Yourself: Full Guide + Autobiography Examples

You’re probably thinking: I’m no Mahatma Gandhi or Steve Jobs—what could I possibly write in my memoir? I don’t even know how to start an autobiography, let alone write the whole thing. But don’t worry: essay writing can be easy, and this autobiography example for students is here to show...

Why I Want to Be a Teacher Essay: Writing Guide [2024]

Some people know which profession to choose from childhood, while others decide much later in life. However, and whenever you come to it, you may have to elaborate on it in your personal statement or cover letter. This is widely known as “Why I Want to Be a Teacher” essay.

Friendship Essay: Writing Guide & Topics on Friendship [New]

Assigned with an essay about friendship? Congrats! It’s one of the best tasks you could get. Digging through your memories and finding strong arguments for this paper can be an enjoyable experience. I bet you will cope with this task effortlessly as we can help you with the assignment. Just...

How to Write an Autobiography: Questions, Principles, & What to Include

When you are assigned an autobiography to write, tens, and even hundreds of questions start buzzing in your head. How to write autobiography essay parts? What to include? How to make your autobiography writing flow? Don’t worry about all this and use the following three simple principles and 15 creative...

All I want to say you is thanks very much for your post! Here are lots of ideas for my essay on a shopping mall. If I have any difficulties with my paper, I will use your writing service.

Cool post with cool tips for writing opinion essays on a shopping mall! I’m so glad that I found this blog! Thanks for creating it!

Descriptive Essay Writing

Descriptive Essay Examples

Amazing Descriptive Essay Examples for Your Help

Published on: Jun 21, 2023

Last updated on: Jul 23, 2024

Descriptive Essay Example 5 Paragraph

5 paragraphs essay writing format is the most common method of composing an essay. This format has 5 paragraphs in total. The sequence of the paragraphs is as follows;

Introduction
Body Paragraph 1
Body Paragraph 2
Body Paragraph 3
Conclusion

Following is an example of a descriptive essay written using the famous 5 paragraph method.

5 Paragraph Descriptive Essay

Get More Examples From Our AI Essay Writer

Descriptive Essay Example About A Person

Descriptive essays are the best option when it comes to describing and writing about a person. A descriptive essay is written using the five human senses. It helps in creating a vivid image in the readerâs mind and understanding what the writer is trying to convey.

Here is one of the best descriptive essay examples about a person. Read it thoroughly and try to understand how a good descriptive essay is written on someoneâs personality.

Descriptive Essay Example About a Person

Descriptive Essay Example About A Place

If you have visited a good holiday spot or any other place and want to let your friends know about it. A descriptive essay can help you explain every detail and moment you had at that place.

Here is one of the good descriptive essay examples about a place. Use it as a sample and learn how you can write such an essay.

Tough Essay Due? Hire Tough Writers!

Descriptive Essay Example for Grade 6

Descriptive essays are frequently assigned to school students. This type of essay helps the students enhance their writing skills and helps them see things in a more analytical way.

If you are a 6 grader and looking for a good descriptive essay example, you are in the right place.

Descriptive Essay Example for Grade 7

Here is one of the best descriptive essay examples for grade 7.

Descriptive Essay Example for Grade 8

If you are looking for some amazing descriptive essay examples for grade 8, you have already found one. Look at the given example and see what a well-written descriptive essay looks like.

Descriptive Essay Example for Grade 10

Essay writing is an inevitable part of a student's academic life . No matter your grade, you will get to write some sort of essay at least once.

Here is an example of a descriptive essay writing for grade10. If you are also a student of this grade, this example might help you to complete your assignment.

Descriptive Essay Example for Grade 12

If you are a senior student and looking for some essay examples, you are exactly where you should be.

Use the below-mentioned example and learn how to write a good essay according to the instructions given to you.

Descriptive Essay Example College

Descriptive essays are a great way to teach students how they can become better writers. Writing a descriptive essay encourages them to see the world more analytically.

Below is an example that will help you and make your writing process easy.

College Descriptive Essay Example

Descriptive Essay Example for University

Descriptive essays are assigned to students at all academic levels. University students are also assigned descriptive essay writing assignments. As they are students of higher educational levels, they are often given a bit of difficult and more descriptive topics.

See the example below and know what a descriptive essay at the university level looks like.

Short Descriptive Essay Example

Every time a descriptive essay isn't written in detail. It depends on the topic of how long the essay will be.

For instance, look at one of the short descriptive essay examples given below. See how the writer has conveyed the concept in a composed way.

Objective Descriptive Essay Example

When writing an objective description essay, you focus on describing the object without conveying your emotions, feelings, or personal reactions. The writer uses sight, sound, or touch for readers' minds to bring life into pictures that were painted by words.

Here is an example that you can use for your help.

Narrative and Descriptive Essay Example

A narrative descriptive essay can be a great way to share your experiences with others. It is a story that teaches a lesson you have learned. The following is an example of a perfect narrative descriptive essay to help you get started.

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That's our Job!

How to Start a Descriptive Essay? - Example

If you don't know how to start your descriptive essay, check this example and create a perfect one.

How to Start a Descriptive Essay - Example

Subjective Descriptive Essay Example

It is a common concept that a descriptive essay revolves around one subject. Be it a place, person, event, or any other object you can think of.

Following is one of the subjective descriptive, easy examples. Use it as a guide to writing an effective descriptive essay yourself.

Writing a descriptive essay is a time-consuming yet tricky task. It needs some very strong writing, analytical, and critical thinking skills. Also, this is a type of essay that a student can not avoid and bypass.

But if you think wisely, work smart, and stay calm, you can get over it easily. Learn how to write a descriptive essay from a short guide given below.

How to Write a Descriptive Essay?

A writer writes a descriptive essay from their knowledge and imaginative mind. In this essay, the writer describes what he has seen or experienced, or ever heard from someone. For a descriptive essay, it is important to stay focused on one point. Also, the writer should use figurative language so that the reader can imagine the situation in mind.

The following are some very basic yet important steps that can help you write an amazing descriptive essay easily.

Choose a Topic

For a descriptive essay, you must choose a vast topic to allow you to express yourself freely. Also, make sure that the topic you choose is not overdone. An overdone will not grab the attention of your intended audience. Check out our descriptive essay topics blog for a variety of intriguing topic suggestions.

Create a Strong Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is the essence of any academic writing. When you select the descriptive essay topic, then you create a strong thesis statement for your essay.

A thesis statement is a sentence or two that explains the whole idea of your essay to the reader. It is stated in the introductory paragraph of the essay. The word choice for creating the thesis statement must be very expressive, composed, and meaningful. Also, use vivid language for the thesis statement.

Collect the Necessary Information

Once you have created the thesis statement and are done writing your essay introduction . Now, it's time to move toward the body paragraphs.

Collect all necessary information related to your topic. You would be adding this information to your essay to support your thesis statement. Make sure that you collect information from authentic sources.

To enhance your essay, make use of some adjectives and adverbs. To make your descriptive essay more vivid, try to incorporate sensory details like touch, taste, sight, and smell.

Create a Descriptive Essay Outline

An outline is yet another necessary element of your college essay. By reading the descriptive essay outline , the reader feels a sense of logic and a guide for the essay.

In the outline, you need to write an introduction, thesis statement, body paragraphs and end up with a formal conclusion.

Proofreading is a simple procedure in which the writer revises the written essay. This is done in order to rectify the document for any kind of spelling or grammatical mistakes. Thus, proofreading makes high-quality content and gives a professional touch to it.

You might be uncertain about writing a good enough descriptive essay and impress your teacher. However, it is very common, so you do not need to stress out.

Hit us up at CollegeEssay.org and get an essay written by our professional descriptive essay writers. Our essay writing service for students aims to help clients in every way possible and ease their stress. Get in touch with our customer support team, and they will take care of all your queries related to your writing.

You can always enhance your writing skills by leveraging the power of our AI essay writing tools .

Place your order now and let all your stress go away in a blink!

Barbara P (Literature)

Barbara is a highly educated and qualified author with a Ph.D. in public health from an Ivy League university. She has spent a significant amount of time working in the medical field, conducting a thorough study on a variety of health issues. Her work has been published in several major publications.

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That’s our Job!

Keep reading

Legal & Policies

Privacy Policy
Cookies Policy
Terms of Use
Refunds & Cancellations
Our Writers
Success Stories
Our Guarantees
Affiliate Program
Referral Program
AI Essay Writer

Disclaimer: All client orders are completed by our team of highly qualified human writers. The essays and papers provided by us are not to be used for submission but rather as learning models only.

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

View all journals
Explore content
About the journal
Publish with us
Sign up for alerts
Open access
Published: 09 September 2024

Trends of Toxoplasma gondii and common transfusable venereal infections among blood donors in Menoufia Province, Egypt

Marwa A. Gouda ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-1723-6792 1 ,
Sara A. Saied 2 ,
Walaa Mohamed Omar Ashry 3 ,
Raafat Abd-Rabow Abd-Eltwab 4 ,
Mohamed Morshdy Aldesoky 4 ,
Omnia Ahmed El-dydamoni 5 ,
Marwa Yousef 6 &
Mona M. El-Derbawy 7

Scientific Reports volume 14 , Article number: 20920 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

Metrics details

Epidemiology
Microbiology

Blood transfusion has a hazard of transmission of many pathogens, including Toxoplasma gondii ( T. gondii ) and other venereal infections. It is crucial to conduct epidemiological surveillance to detect the prevalence of these pathogens. The study aimed to assess the seroprevalence of T. gondii and common transfusable venereal infections among healthy blood donors in Menoufia Province, Egypt, and identify associated risk factors. Four hundred twenty individuals were recruited between January and April 2023 for cross-sectional descriptive research from the blood banks of Menoufia University medical hospitals. Collected blood samples were screened for anti- T. gondii IgM and IgG, HBsAg, anti-HCV antibodies, HIV p24 antigen and anti-HIV antibodies, and anti- Treponema pallidum antibodies. 46 (11.0%) and 22 donors (5.2%) individuals tested positive for anti- T. gondii IgG with a 95% CI (8.3–14.6) and IgM with a 95% CI (3.5–8.1), respectively, while one patient (0.2%) was positive for both antibodies. Regarding venereal infections, 12 (2.9%) were positive for HBV, 6 (1.4%) were positive for HCV, 7 (1.7%) were positive for HIV, and none of the tested population showed positivity for syphilis. Female gender, consumption of raw meat, agricultural environment, poor awareness about T. gondii , and blood group type (especially AB and O groups) were identified as independent risk factors for T. gondii infection. The study highlights the importance of testing blood donors for T. gondii and common transfusable venereal illnesses. Starting health education programs and preventative measures, such as suitable meat handling and cleanliness practices, is critical for minimizing the occurrence of these illnesses. Larger-scale additional study is advised to confirm these results and provide guidance for public health initiatives.

Introduction

Blood transfusion is a critical medical procedure vital for patients’ treatment. Every year, millions of people are exposed to avoidable life-threatening risks as a result of hazardous blood transfusions. The major transfusion-transmitted infections are Hepatitis B virus (HBV), Hepatitis C virus (HCV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and syphilis, which pose significant threats to recipient safety 1 .

Toxoplasma gondii is a food-borne zoonotic protozoan parasite capable of infecting all homoeothermic vertebrates; however, felids, which are members of the Felidae family, serve as the definitive hosts for ( T. gondii ) infection, as both the sexual (intestinal) and asexual (tissue) cycles occur simultaneously in these animals (cats), resulting in un-sporulated non-infectious oocyst elimination and excretion 2 .

Oocysts may shed in vast numbers, even though they typically shed within 1–3 weeks. Oocysts sporulate in the environment in one to five days and spread infection. Warmer settings can facilitate sporulation more quickly, which increases the rate at which oocysts are found in the environment 3 . Temperature, humidity, and precipitation patterns all influence the survival and dissemination of T. gondii oocysts in the environment 4 . Warmer temperatures and greater rainfall can help oocysts survive and spread, potentially boosting infection rates in both animal and human populations 5 .

The infection with T. gondii usually appears as mild manifestations observed on exposure in immunocompetent people, such as warmth, tiredness, and cervical lymphadenopathy, which are self-limited; however, pneumonitis and encephalitis are complications of the infection, which is severe in immunocompromised people (such as AIDS patients) and blood recipients (such as those with thalassemia, haemophilia, dialysis patients, organ transplant recipients, and neonatal jaundice) 6 , 7 .

Co-infections can increase the severity of some infectious disorders. It has the potential to affect immune responses, and disease severity, and increase inflammatory cytokines 8 . Since T. gondii is considered one of the most successful parasites on the planet, the T. gondii disease burden has been classified as one of the most significant parasitic disorders. In order to reduce the occurrence of T. gondii infection among humans, it is urgent to understand the current status of this pathogen. Our study aimed to estimate the current situation of T. gondii and other transfusable venereal infections among blood donors in Menoufia Province, reflecting previously unknown regional outlines. Also, the study evaluated possible risk factors linked to T. gondii exposure in the population. Finally, the study intended to propose community-wide methods to raise awareness and prevent T. gondii infection.

Subjects and methods

Ethical approval and consent to participate.

This study was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the National Liver Disease Institute’s research ethics committee (NLI IRB procedure N. 00,422/2022). All subjects have given informed consent after being informed about the study’s objectives, the importance of participation as part of the community, and any potential adverse side effects of puncture. All subjects gave informed consent after being informed about the study’s objectives, the importance of participation as part of the community, and any potential negative side effects of puncture.

Study design

This cross-sectional descriptive study involved 420 blood donors’ serum samples. Samples were gathered randomly from blood donor volunteers in Menoufia University hospitals’ blood banks between January and April 2023. The inclusion criteria included individuals aged 18 and above who volunteered to participate by giving blood and providing informed permission. Individuals with a history of chronic diseases, recent infections, or who refused to participate were excluded from the study. Menoufia Province is a governorate in northern Egypt near the Nile Delta. Its surface area is about 2,543.03 km 2 , with 4,366,000 people in total, as reported in 2018, and its longitude and latitude are 30.52° N and 30.99° E. The governorate is considered one of Egypt’s regions with the highest population densities and is an important center for liver transplantation at the National Liver Institute.

Sample size estimation

The present sample size was calculated according to Yılmaz et al. (2021) 9 , who revealed 2.3% T. gondii IgM seropositivity at alpha error 0.05 and the power of the study 90%; the estimated sample size was 396 participants. Under the following formula,

e2,where n = sample size, z = standard error with the chosen level of confidence (1.96), p = proportion detected in the reference study, q = 1 − p , and e = acceptable sample error (0.05).

Questionnaire

A predesigned questionnaire was taken from each participant. It included:

Socio-demographic data.

Awareness about T. gondii infection: was assessed through a series of questions assessing the fundamental understanding of the disease, the transmission routes, hosts, the role of raw meat consumption in transmission, agricultural-related activities and other suggested risk factors, and possible complications of T. gondii infection, particularly for pregnant women and persons with weakened immune systems. Through 15 questions that were scored as (2, for correct answer; 1, for incomplete answer; and 0, for wrong answer, with a total score of 30; the good awareness level was at a score of 15 or above while the score less than 15 was considered as poor awareness.

Risk factors associated with T. gondii infection: including dealing with cats, agricultural environment-related activity, eating or dealing with raw meat as well as hand washing before eating, it also included other data, including blood group type, and previous blood transfusion.

Blood Sampling

Each person donated three mL of venous blood, centrifuged for five minutes at 3000 rpm to extract the serum and kept at − 20 °C for further laboratory analysis.

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)

Serum samples were transferred to the Parasitology Laboratory, Department of Clinical and Molecular Parasitology, National Liver Institute, Menoufia University, Egypt, to detect T. gondii -specific IgM and IgG antibodies. All were analyzed using an ELISA kit that is available commercially (Cat No. SL2055Hu_1 and SL2054Hu-1, SunLong Biotec). The manufacturer’s guidelines were fulfilled for running the analysis. Based on ELISA kits, positive samples were considered at titers above 1 and 3 IU for IgM and IgG, respectively. Negative samples were defined at values below 0.8 and 1 IU for IgM and IgG, respectively. Between the two ranges, a grey zone is reported. The optical density (OD) was measured under a 450 nm wave.

Venereal infection screening

All samples were tested for HBV surface antigen (HBsAg), anti-HCV antibodies, HIV p24 antigen, anti-HIV antibodies, and anti- T. pallidum antibodies. The venereal infection screening was conducted using an immunoassay Cobas e 601 immunoassay analyzer (Roche Diagnostics, Germany), which employs electrochemiluminescence (ELC) technology. The tests used were Elecsys HBSAGII (Cat No. 07251076190), Elecsys AHCVII (Cat No. 06427405190), Elecsys HIV Duo test (Cat No. 07229542190), and Elecsys Syphilis (Cat No. 07251378190), all provided by COBAS (Roche Diagnostics) and performed according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Statistical analysis

Categorical and quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS (Statistical Package Software for Social Science) version 20.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). The prevalence of T. gondii antibodies and positivity to other transfusable venereal infections were assessed through frequency, percentage, and a 95% confidence interval (CI). Comparing positive and negative T. gondii antibody groups regarding qualitative variables by chi-squared test and quantitative normally distributed data was tested by student’s t-test. The study employed multivariate binary logistic regression analysis to calculate adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to determine independent risk factors for T. gondii infection. A p-value of less than 0.05 determined a statistically significant result.

Prevalence of transfusable venereal infections

Regarding the prevalence of transfusable venereal infections, initial screenings (for HBV, HCV, HIV, and syphilis) detected 12 cases (2.9%) positive for HBsAg, six positive cases for anti-HCV antibodies (1.4%), seven cases positive for HIV p24 antigen and anti-HIV antibodies (1.7%), and nonpositive for syphilis (Fig. 1 ,B).

( A ): Prevalence of T. gondii among blood donors ( B ): Prevalence of transfusable venereal diseases.

Seropositivity of T. gondii infection

The ELISA test screened 420 blood samples for T. gondii- specific IgG and IgM antibodies. Out of them, 69 (16.4%) blood donors had anti- T. gondii antibodies in their sera (IgG, IgM, or both) (Fig. 1 , A). Forty-six cases (11%) were IgG-only seropositive, 22 cases (5.2%) were IgM-positive, and one case was positive for both IgG and IgM (0.2%) (Table 1 ).

Demographic characteristics of the studied population

Among the healthy blood donors enlisted in this research, the respondents’ average age was 32.39 ± 10.51 years (with a range of 17–66 years). Ages 21–40 comprised the largest age cohort of blood donors (68.1%). The vast bulk of the subjects (97.1%) were men. Sixty-six-point two percent (66.2%) of the volunteers were highly educated (Table 2 ).

Significant risk factors

Sixty-three (15.4%) of male-positive cases and six (50%) of female-positive cases indicated that the female sex was a major risk factor. Also, dealing with cats, eating rand, dealing with row meat, the agricultural environment, poor awareness about T. gondii infection, and blood groups were significant risk factors for T. gondii infection. Age, residence, educational level, and the presence of other transfusable venereal infections weren’t associated with the T. gondii infection (Table 3 ). There was no significant association between seropositivity for T. gondii and venereal infections (Table 4 ).

Multivariate analysis of independent risk factors associated with T. gondii infection

Multivariate regression analysis revealed that female gender, consumption of raw meat, agriculture environment and poor T. gondii infection awareness were independent risk factors for T. gondii infection with an odds ratio (95% CI): 3.1 (1.81–9.45), 32.62 (13.14–81.0), 4.57 (2.01–10.41), 12.66 (4.53–35.42) for the female gender, consumption of raw meat, agriculture environment, lack of T. gondii infection awareness respectively while for ABO grouping with taking B group as a reference, AB and O groups were independent risk groups with odds ratio (95% CI): 3.26 (1.92–7.84) & 4.58 (2.11–11.47) respectively (Table 5 ).

Understanding the prevalence of T. gondii and venereal infectious pathogens and risk factors among blood donors in Menoufia Province is crucial for public health strategies. This research is an epidemiologic report on seropositivity to T. gondii infection among healthy blood donors in Menoufia blood banks, Egypt. Menoufia Governorate had a low prevalence compared to most worldwide studies. In this research, the authors reported a total seroprevalence of 16.4% (95% CI 13–20.3); IgM-positive cases represented 5.5%, posing a risk of transmitting the infection to blood recipients. By integrating molecular approaches, supplementary serological markers, and direct proof of parasitemia, the hypothesis can be substantially reinforced, leading to a more thorough evaluation of the risk of T. gondii infection by blood transfusion, which is undertaken currently in epidemiological national research funded by STDF aiming to complete the current research.

Globally, according to estimates by Foroutan-Rad et al. 10 , T. gondii infection affects 33% of blood donors worldwide, with rates highest in Africa (46%) and lowest in Asia (29%) 10 . The prevalence rate varies by nation: 6.26% in China 11 , 9.3% in Taiwan 12 , 19.66% in India 13 , 20.5% in Serbia 14 , 25.6% in Turkey 9 , 36% in Portugal 15 , 48.1% in Brazil 16 , and 67.92% in Côte d’Ivoire 17 .

In other African countries, the seroprevalence among tested blood donors was 44.4% in South-West and Central-East Tunisia 18 and 47.7% in Sidi Bel Abbès, West Algeria 19 . The difference in serological methods used across studies is probably the main factor in the difference in reported prevalence of T. gondii infection among different nations.

Compared with previous findings from other Egyptian governorates, the current seroprevalence rates are consistent with those from El-Wadi El Gadded, which had the lowest incidence between 1 and 25% 20 . Earlier studies reported a prevalence between 33.7 and 67.4% of healthy Egyptian blood donors had antibodies to T. gondii infection, comparable to a range of 3–42.5% in the general Egyptian population. Increased seropositivity was seen. in the Lower Egypt bordering governorates of Sharqia and Qalyoubia (38.8% and 27.5% respectively), as well as in the rural Upper Egypt governorate of Beni-Suef (35.2%) 21 . Cairo also had high infection rates (between 30 and 42.5%) 21 . The studied group’s higher level of illness knowledge is probably the reason for the reduced infection prevalence when compared to estimates from throughout the world. These differences point to possible socioeconomic and geographic variables affecting T. gondii exposure in Egypt.

Multivariate regression analysis displayed that contact with cats, consuming raw or undercooked meat, and having agricultural pursuits are significant risk factors for T. gondii seropositivity, demonstrating that both infection routes—ingesting oocysts (soil contamination, contaminated water, and contaminated raw food e.g. salads, vegetables) and tissue cysts found in undercooked meat (a foodborne transmission)—showed up among the blood donors with different educational levels. These findings are supported by earlier studies 9 , 22 . From their results, domestic cats may be related to the exposure of the individuals included in the study to T. gondii . However, it is worth noting that direct contact with cats does not guarantee transmission of the parasite since T. gondii oocysts are eliminated as non-infective. In contrast to the present findings, El-Deeb and their alleles 23 found no statistically significant association between seropositivity concerning contact with domestic cats and meat consumption in Menoufia, Egypt. However, contact with soil was a considerable risk factor, which could be explained by the prevalence of domestic and stray cats, both more susceptible to parasites 23 .

Likewise, in the research done by Mahmoudvand et al. 22 , the prevalence of T. gondii infection in the current study was significantly higher in female donors (95%CI 1.71–17.52) despite the limited number of female participants in our study compared to male donors. Mahmoudvand et al. 22 , attributed this disparity to the female daily exposure to more tissue cysts and oocysts. Handling raw meat and gardening are cultural practices and household activities that may expose women to greater levels of T. gondii . Therefore, validating these findings using a more extensive sample size is necessary. These results were not supported by Hosseini and his/ her colleagues 24 , who did not find gender a significant risk factor.

Seropositivity in this research was higher in rural areas (53.6%) than in urban areas (46.4%); however, the difference was insignificant. This finding contrasts with those reported by some authors 22 , 24 . They hypothesized in their research that the overabundance of cats, inadequate sanitation of the environment, and lax hygiene standards might cause this difference.

The ABO phenotype and RhD antigen were previously associated with pathogenic protozoa of the phylum Apicomplexa. The protective effect of type O blood against severe malaria has been observed, possibly explaining the high prevalence of type O in regions where Plasmodium falciparum is endemic 25 .

Our current research discovered that blood donors carrying the type O blood group had the highest incidence of T. gondii infection and were riskier, with a significant difference between T. gondii and ( P < 0.001), which is equivalent to the findings reported previously in northern Egypt 26 but different from those reported in Iran, where they found blood group B carriers more susceptible to infection with T. gondii infection 24 . Following the findings of Hosseini et al. research, the level of disease between Rh-positive and negative samples was not different 24 . Despite the association our study found between the blood group and seropositivity, this does not prove that the two are causally related to the onset of illness. Our study’s findings should be seen as preliminary and need more investigation in follow-up studies.

Most positive cases ranged from 21 to 40 years; however, age was not a significant risk factor in our univariate analysis. In the same vein, research done in Ardabil Province, northwestern Iran, demonstrated that most positive cases were aged 31–40 with no significant difference 27 . Unlike the current finding, other authors found that age substantially contributes to infection. Their conclusion was attributed to the cumulative effect of being exposed to the parasite over time 14 .

This research showed a higher prevalence of HBsAg (2.9%), followed by HIV and HCV (1.7% and 1.4%, respectively). Syphilis cases were absent among the studied population. The higher percent of HBsAg compared to other screened transfusion-transmissible infections was consistent with similar reports from a study among blood donors in Bahir Dar, North West, Ethiopia, where HBV was prevalent in 2.8% of cases, followed by HIV and HCV 28 .

Co-infections can worsen the symptoms of some infectious disorders. It can modulate immune responses, exacerbate disease severity, and increase inflammatory cytokines. While this study did not find a substantial prevalence of co-infection between T. gondii and the viral agents tested (HBV, HIV, and HCV), other research suggests that these pathogens may interact. In Egypt, for example, T. gondii co-infection with HBV and HCV was reported 29 . Furthermore, HIV infection may impair the immune system, increasing the risk of reactivating latent T. gondii infection 8 , 11 . T. gondii co-infection with certain viruses must be addressed to prevent, detect, and cure infections. It needs further examination and research.

Conclusion and recommendations

This cross-sectional research investigated the seroprevalence of T. gondii and common transfusable venereal infections across healthy blood donors in Egypt’s central Menoufia blood banks. According to this study, the governorate of Menoufia had a low incidence of T. gondii infection among blood donors.

Therefore, testing for T. gondii infection is required in blood donors to prevent potentially fatal outcomes for blood receivers. Building programs for health education are also required as a suitable strategy for preventing diseases.

Value-added of this research

We addressed the seroprevalence of T. gondii in the studied population, which provides a step for further studies and implementation research on a larger scale to test preventive strategies in the future.

Data availability

This article encompasses all data that was generated or evaluated.The corresponding author will provide any additional inquiries.

Abbreviations

Complete blood picture

Hepatitis B virus

Treponema pallidum

Hepatitis C virus

Human immunodeficiency virus

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

Immunoglobulin G

Immunoglobulin M

Sultan, S. et al. Trends of venereal infections among healthy blood donors at Karachi. 19 , 192–196 (2016).

Pozio, E. How globalization and climate change could affect foodborne parasites. Exp. Parasitol. 208 , 107807 (2020).

Article PubMed Google Scholar

Cantey, P. T., Montgomery, S. P. & Straily, A. Neglected parasitic infections: What family physicians need to know—A CDC update. Am. Fam. Physician. 104 (3), 277–287 (2021).

PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar

Yan, C., Liang, L.-J., Zheng, K.-Y. & Zhu, X.-Q. Impact of environmental factors on the emergence, transmission and distribution of Toxoplasma gondii . Parasit. Vectors 9 , 137 (2016).

Article PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar

Shapiro, K. et al. Environmental transmission of Toxoplasma gondii : Oocysts in water, soil and food. Food waterborne Parasitol. 15 , e00049 (2019).

Elhence, P., Agarwal, P., Prasad, K. N. & Chaudhary, R. K. Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in North Indian blood donors: Implications for transfusion transmissible toxoplasmosis. Transfus. Apher. Sci. Off. J. World Apher Assoc. Off. J. Eur. Soc. Haemapheresis 43 , 37–40 (2010).

Google Scholar

Arefkhah, N. et al. Molecular genotyping and serological evaluation of Toxoplasma gondii in mothers and their spontaneous aborted fetuses in Southwest of Iran. Comp. Immunol. Microbiol. Infect. Dis. 66 , 101342 (2019).

Bazmjoo, A. et al. Toxoplasma gondii , HBV, and HCV co- infection and their correlation with CD4 cells among Iranian HIV-positive patients. Immunity. Inflamm. Dis. 11 , 794 (2023).

Article Google Scholar

Yılmaz, A., Yazıcı, E. & Turk, C. Assessment of seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in blood donors applied to the blood center of Gazi University Hospital. Iran. J. Microbiol. 13 , 243–247 (2021).

Foroutan-Rad, M. et al. Toxoplasmosis in blood donors: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Transfus. Med. Rev. 30 , 116–122 (2016).

Wang, T. et al. Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in blood donors in mainland China: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Parasite https://doi.org/10.1051/parasite/2018037 (2018).

Chiang, T.-Y. et al. Seroepidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii infection among healthy blood donors in Taiwan. PLoS One 7 , e48139 (2012).

Article ADS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar

Stephen, S., Pradeep, J., Anitharaj, V. & Janarthanam, V. Seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis in voluntary blood donors of Puducherry and surrounding districts of Tamil Nadu. J. Parasit. Dis. 41 , 1158–1161 (2017).

Stopić, M. et al. Epidemiology of toxoplasmosis in SERBIA: A cross-sectional study on blood donors. Microorganisms 10 , 492 (2022).

Rodrigues, F. T. et al. Seroepidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii in blood donors in Portugal. Transfus. Apher. Sci. 59 , 102777 (2020).

Nakashima, F. et al. Serum IgG anti- Toxoplasma gondii antibody concentrations do not correlate nested PCR results in blood donors. Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol. 9 , 461 (2019).

Siransy, L. et al. Immunity status of blood donors regarding Toxoplasma gondii infection in a Low-Income district of Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. West Africa. J. Immunol. Res. 2016 , 6830895 (2016).

PubMed Google Scholar

Lachkhem, A. et al. Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii among healthy blood donors in two locations in Tunisia and associated risk factors. Parasite 27 , 51 (2020).

Belkacemi, M. & Heddi, B. Toxoplasmosis immunity status of blood donors in Sidi Bel Abbès. West Algeria. Cureus 14 , e28826 (2022).

Bayoumy, A., Ibrahim, W. L. F., Abou El Nour, B. M. & Said, A. A. A. The parasitic profile among school children in El-wadi El-gadded governorate. Egypt. J. Egypt. Soc. Parasitol. 46 , 605–612 (2016).

Abou Elez, R. M. M., Hassanen, E. A. A., Tolba, H. M. N. & Elsohaby, I. Seroprevalence and risk factors associated with Toxoplasma gondii infection in domestic rabbits and humans. Vet. Parasitol. Reg. Stud. Rep. 8 , 133–137 (2017).

Mahmoudvand, H. et al. Seroprevalence and risk factors of Toxoplasma gondii infection among healthy blood donors in south-east of Iran. Parasite Immunol. 37 , 362–367 (2015).

El Deeb, H. K., Salah-Eldin, H., Khodeer, S. & Allah, A. A. Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in antenatal population in Menoufia governorate. Egypt. Acta Trop. 124 , 185–191 (2012).

Hosseini, S. A. et al. A serological investigation and genotyping of Toxoplasma gondii among Iranian blood donors indicates threat to health of blood recipients. Transfus. Apher. Sci. 59 , 102723 (2020).

Jajosky, R. P. et al. The impact of ABO and RhD blood types on Babesia microti infection. PLoS Negl. Trop. Dis. 17 , e0011060 (2023).

Elsheikha, H. M. et al. Seroprevalence of and risk factors for Toxoplasma gondii antibodies among asymptomatic blood donors in Egypt. Parasitol. Res. 104 , 1471–1476 (2009).

Asfaram, S. et al. High occurrence of Toxoplasma gondii infection among blood donors in Ardabil Province as main focus of zoonotic visceral leishmaniosis, northwestern Iran. Ann. Parasitol. 67 , 611–617 (2021).

Legese, B. et al. Association of ABO and rhesus blood types with transfusion-transmitted infections (TTIs) among apparently healthy blood donors at Bahir Dar blood bank, Bahir Dar, North West, Ethiopia: A retrospective cross-sectional study. J. Blood Med. 13 , 581–587 (2022).

El-sayed, N. M., Ramadan, M. E. & Ramadan, M. E. Toxoplasma gondii infection and chronic liver diseases: Evidence of an association. Tropical Med. Infect. Dis. https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed1010007 (2016).

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was created at the National Liver Institute and Faculty of Medicine at Menoufia University in Shebin El Kom City, Egypt. We appreciate the blood donors who took part in our research.

Open access funding provided by The Science, Technology & Innovation Funding Authority (STDF) in cooperation with The Egyptian Knowledge Bank (EKB). The research paper, writing, and publication were done without receiving any financial assistance.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Department of Clinical and Molecular Parasitology, National Liver Institute, Menoufia University, Menoufia, Egypt

Marwa A. Gouda

Department of Clinical Pathology, National Liver Institute, Menoufia University, Menoufia, Egypt

Sara A. Saied

Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Damietta Faculty of Medicine (Girls), Al-Azhar University, Damietta, Egypt

Walaa Mohamed Omar Ashry

Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Damietta Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Damietta, Egypt

Raafat Abd-Rabow Abd-Eltwab & Mohamed Morshdy Aldesoky

Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls (Cairo), Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt

Omnia Ahmed El-dydamoni

Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt

Marwa Yousef

Department of Medical Parasitology New Damietta Faculty of Medicine (Girls), Al-Azhar University, Damietta, Egypt

Mona M. El-Derbawy

You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All authors contributed to the design and conception of the research. M.A.G., W.M.O.A., R.A.A., M.M.A., O.A.E., M.Y., S.A.S., and M.M.E. gathered and analyzed the data. The first draft of the manuscript was written by M.A.G., and all other authors offered comments on previous drafts. All authors have reviewed and approved the final draft ready for publication and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marwa A. Gouda .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher's note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Gouda, M.A., Saied, S.A., Ashry, W.M.O. et al. Trends of Toxoplasma gondii and common transfusable venereal infections among blood donors in Menoufia Province, Egypt. Sci Rep 14 , 20920 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-70740-9

Download citation

Received : 24 March 2024

Accepted : 20 August 2024

Published : 09 September 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-70740-9

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

Toxoplasma gondii Prevalence
Blood group antigens

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines . If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Quick links

Explore articles by subject
Guide to authors
Editorial policies

Sign up for the Nature Briefing: Microbiology newsletter — what matters in microbiology research, free to your inbox weekly.

Log in using your username and password

Search More Search for this keyword Advanced search
Latest content
Current issue
For authors
New editors
BMJ Journals

http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3298-5719 Thomas Romeas 1 , 2 , 3 ,
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1748-7241 Félix Croteau 3 , 4 , 5 ,
Suzanne Leclerc 3 , 4
1 Sport Sciences , Institut national du sport du Québec , Montreal , Quebec , Canada
2 School of Optometry , Université de Montréal , Montreal , Quebec , Canada
3 IOC Research Centre for Injury Prevention and Protection of Athlete Health , Réseau Francophone Olympique de la Recherche en Médecine du Sport , Montreal , Quebec , Canada
4 Sport Medicine , Institut national du sport du Québec , Montreal , Quebec , Canada
5 School of Physical and Occupational Therapy , McGill University , Montreal , Quebec , Canada
Correspondence to Dr Thomas Romeas; thomas.romeas{at}umontreal.ca

Objectives This cohort study reported descriptive statistics in athletes engaged in Summer and Winter Olympic sports who sustained a sport-related concussion (SRC) and assessed the impact of access to multidisciplinary care and injury modifiers on recovery.

Methods 133 athletes formed two subgroups treated in a Canadian sport institute medical clinic: earlier (≤7 days) and late (≥8 days) access. Descriptive sample characteristics were reported and unrestricted return to sport (RTS) was evaluated based on access groups as well as injury modifiers. Correlations were assessed between time to RTS, history of concussions, the number of specialist consults and initial symptoms.

Results 160 SRC (median age 19.1 years; female=86 (54%); male=74 (46%)) were observed with a median (IQR) RTS duration of 34.0 (21.0–63.0) days. Median days to care access was different in the early (1; n SRC =77) and late (20; n SRC =83) groups, resulting in median (IQR) RTS duration of 26.0 (17.0–38.5) and 45.0 (27.5–84.5) days, respectively (p<0.001). Initial symptoms displayed a meaningful correlation with prognosis in this study (p<0.05), and female athletes (52 days (95% CI 42 to 101)) had longer recovery trajectories than male athletes (39 days (95% CI 31 to 65)) in the late access group (p<0.05).

Conclusions Olympic athletes in this cohort experienced an RTS time frame of about a month, partly due to limited access to multidisciplinary care and resources. Earlier access to care shortened the RTS delay. Greater initial symptoms and female sex in the late access group were meaningful modifiers of a longer RTS.

Brain Concussion
Cohort Studies
Retrospective Studies

Data availability statement

Data are available on reasonable request. Due to the confidential nature of the dataset, it will be shared through a controlled access repository and made available on specific and reasonable requests.

https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2024-108211

Statistics from Altmetric.com

Request permissions.

If you wish to reuse any or all of this article please use the link below which will take you to the Copyright Clearance Center’s RightsLink service. You will be able to get a quick price and instant permission to reuse the content in many different ways.

WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ON THIS TOPIC

Most data regarding the impact of sport-related concussion (SRC) guidelines on return to sport (RTS) are derived from collegiate or recreational athletes. In these groups, time to RTS has steadily increased in the literature since 2005, coinciding with the evolution of RTS guidelines. However, current evidence suggests that earlier access to care may accelerate recovery and RTS time frames.

WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS

This study reports epidemiological data on the occurrence of SRC in athletes from several Summer and Winter Olympic sports with either early or late access to multidisciplinary care. We found the median time to RTS for Olympic athletes with an SRC was 34.0 days which is longer than that reported in other athletic groups such as professional or collegiate athletes. Time to RTS was reduced by prompt access to multidisciplinary care following SRC, and sex-influenced recovery in the late access group with female athletes having a longer RTS timeline. Greater initial symptoms, but not prior concussion history, were also associated with a longer time to RTS.

HOW THIS STUDY MIGHT AFFECT RESEARCH, PRACTICE OR POLICY

Considerable differences exist in access to care for athletes engaged in Olympic sports, which impact their recovery. In this cohort, several concussions occurred during international competitions where athletes are confronted with poor access to organised healthcare. Pathways for prompt access to multidisciplinary care should be considered by healthcare authorities, especially for athletes who travel internationally and may not have the guidance or financial resources to access recommended care.

Introduction

After two decades of consensus statements, sport-related concussion (SRC) remains a high focus of research, with incidence ranging from 0.1 to 21.5 SRC per 1000 athlete exposures, varying according to age, sex, sport and level of competition. 1 2 Evidence-based guidelines have been proposed by experts to improve its identification and management, such as those from the Concussion in Sport Group. 3 Notably, they recommend specific strategies to improve SRC detection and monitoring such as immediate removal, 4 prompt access to healthcare providers, 5 evidence-based interventions 6 and multidisciplinary team approaches. 7 It is believed that these guidelines contribute to improving the early identification and management of athletes with an SRC, thereby potentially mitigating its long-term consequences.

Nevertheless, evidence regarding the impact of SRC guidelines implementation remains remarkably limited, especially within high-performance sport domains. In fact, most reported SRC data focus on adolescent student-athletes, collegiate and sometimes professional athletes in the USA but often neglect Olympians. 1 2 8–11 Athletes engaged in Olympic sports, often referred to as elite amateurs, are typically classified among the highest performers in elite sport, alongside professional athletes. 12 13 They train year-round and uniquely compete regularly on the international stage in sports that often lack professional leagues and rely on highly variable resources and facilities, mostly dependent on winning medals. 14 Unlike professional athletes, Olympians do not have access to large financial rewards. Although some Olympians work or study in addition to their intensive sports practice, they can devote more time to full-time sports practice compared with collegiate athletes. Competition calendars in Olympians differ from collegiate athletes, with periodic international competitions (eg, World Cups, World Championships) throughout the whole year rather than regular domestic competitions within a shorter season (eg, semester). Olympians outclass most collegiate athletes, and only the best collegiate athletes will have the chance to become Olympians and/or professionals. 12 13 15 In Canada, a primary reason for limited SRC data in Olympic sports is that the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sports Institute (COPSI) network only adopted official guidelines in 2018 to standardise care for athletes’ SRC nationwide. 16 17 The second reason could be the absence of a centralised medical structure and surveillance systems, identified as key factors contributing to the under-reporting and underdiagnosis of athletes with an SRC. 18

Among the available evidence on the evolution of SRC management, a 2023 systematic review and meta-analysis in athletic populations including children, adolescents and adults indicated that a full return to sport (RTS) could take up to a month but is estimated to require 19.8 days on average (15.4 days in adults), as opposed to the initial expectation of approximately 10.0 days based on studies published prior to 2005. 19 In comparison, studies focusing strictly on American collegiate athletes report median times to RTS of 16 days. 9 20 21 Notably, a recent study of military cadets reported an even longer return to duty times of 29.4 days on average, attributed to poorer access to care and fewer incentives to return to play compared with elite sports. 22 In addition, several modifiers have also been identified as influencing the time to RTS, such as the history of concussions, type of sport, sex, past medical problems (eg, preinjury modifiers), as well as the initial number of symptoms and their severity (eg, postinjury modifiers). 20 22 The evidence regarding the potential influence of sex on the time to RTS has yielded mixed findings in this area. 23–25 In fact, females are typically under-represented in SRC research, highlighting the need for additional studies that incorporate more balanced sample representation across sexes and control for known sources of bias. 26 Interestingly, a recent Concussion Assessment, Research and Education Consortium study, which included a high representation of concussed female athletes (615 out of 1071 patients), revealed no meaningful differences in RTS between females and males (13.5 and 11.8 days, respectively). 27 Importantly, findings in the sporting population suggested that earlier initiation of clinical care is linked to shorter recovery after concussion. 5 28 However, these factors affecting the time to RTS require a more thorough investigation, especially among athletes engaged in Olympic sports who may or may not have equal access to prompt, high-quality care.

Therefore, the primary objective of this study was to provide descriptive statistics among athletes with SRC engaged in both Summer and Winter Olympic sport programmes over a quadrennial, and to assess the influence of recommended guidelines of the COPSI network and the fifth International Consensus Conference on Concussion in Sport on the duration of RTS performance. 16 17 Building on available evidence, the international schedule constraints, variability in resources 14 and high-performance expectation among this elite population, 22 prolonged durations for RTS, compared with what is typically reported (eg, 16.0 or 15.4 days), were hypothesised in Olympians. 3 19 The secondary objective was to more specifically evaluate the impact of access to multidisciplinary care and injury modifiers on the time to RTS. Based on current evidence, 5 7 29 30 the hypothesis was formulated that athletes with earlier multidisciplinary access would experience a faster RTS. Regarding injury modifiers, it was expected that female and male athletes would show similar time to RTS despite presenting sex-specific characteristics of SRC. 31 The history of concussions, the severity of initial symptoms and the number of specialist consults were expected to be positively correlated to the time to RTS. 20 32

Participants

A total of 133 athletes (F=72; M=61; mean age±SD: 20.7±4.9 years old) who received medical care at the Institut national du sport du Québec, a COPSI training centre set up with a medical clinic, were included in this cohort study with retrospective analysis. They participated in 23 different Summer and Winter Olympic sports which were classified into six categories: team (soccer, water polo), middle distance/power (rowing, swimming), speed/strength (alpine skiing, para alpine skiing, short and long track speed skating), precision/skill-dependent (artistic swimming, diving, equestrian, figure skating, gymnastics, skateboard, synchronised skating, trampoline) and combat/weight-making (boxing, fencing, judo, para judo, karate, para taekwondo, wrestling) sports. 13 This sample consists of two distinct groups: (1) early access group in which athletes had access to a medical integrated support team of multidisciplinary experts within 7 days following their SRC and (2) late access group composed of athletes who had access to a medical integrated support team of multidisciplinary experts eight or more days following their SRC. 5 30 Inclusion criteria for the study were participation in a national or international-level sports programme 13 and having sustained at least one SRC diagnosed by an authorised healthcare practitioner (eg, physician and/or physiotherapist).

Clinical context

The institute clinic provides multidisciplinary services for care of patients with SRC including a broad range of recommended tests for concussion monitoring ( table 1 ). The typical pathway for the athletes consisted of an initial visit to either a sports medicine physician or their team sports therapist. A clinical diagnosis of SRC was then confirmed by a sports medicine physician, and referral for the required multidisciplinary assessments ensued based on the patient’s signs and symptoms. Rehabilitation progression was based on the evaluation of exercise tolerance, 33 priority to return to cognitive tasks and additional targeted support based on clinical findings of a cervical, visual or vestibular nature. 17 The expert team worked in an integrated manner with the athlete and their coaching staff for the rehabilitation phase, including regular round tables and ongoing communication. 34 For some athletes, access to recommended care was fee based, without a priori agreements with a third party payer (eg, National Sports Federation).

View inline

Main evaluations performed to guide the return to sport following sport-related concussion

Data collection

Data were collected at the medical clinic using a standardised injury surveillance form based on International Olympic Committee guidelines. 35 All injury characteristics were extracted from the central injury database between 1 July 2018 and 31 July 2022. This period corresponds to a Winter Olympic sports quadrennial but also covers 3 years for Summer Olympic sports due to the postponing of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Therefore, the observation period includes a typical volume of competitions across sports and minimises differences in exposure based on major sports competition schedules. The information extracted from the database included: participant ID, sex, date of birth, sport, date of injury, type of injury, date of their visit at the clinic, clearance date of unrestricted RTS (eg, defined as step 6 of the RTS strategy with a return to normal gameplay including competitions), the number and type of specialist consults, mechanism of injury (eg, fall, hit), environment where the injury took place (eg, training, competition), history of concussions, history of modifiers (eg, previous head injury, migraines, learning disability, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, depression, anxiety, psychotic disorder), as well as the number of symptoms and the total severity score from the first Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 5 (SCAT5) assessment following SRC. 17

Following a Shapiro-Wilk test, medians, IQR and non-parametric tests were used for the analyses because of the absence of normal distributions for all the variables in the dataset (all p<0.001). The skewness was introduced by the presence of individuals that required lengthy recovery periods. One participant was removed from the analysis because their time to consult with the multidisciplinary team was extremely delayed (>1 year).

Descriptive statistics were used to describe the participant’s demographics, SRC characteristics and risk factors in the total sample. Estimated incidences of SRC were also reported for seven resident sports at the institute for which it was possible to quantify a detailed estimate of training volume based on the annual number of training and competition hours as well as the number of athletes in each sport.

To assess if access to multidisciplinary care modified the time to RTS, we compared time to RTS between early and late access groups using a method based on median differences described elsewhere. 36 Wilcoxon rank sum tests were also performed to make between-group comparisons on single variables of age, time to first consult, the number of specialists consulted and medical visits. Fisher’s exact tests were used to compare count data between groups on variables of sex, history of concussion, time since the previous concussion, presence of injury modifiers, environment and mechanism of injury. Bonferroni corrections were applied for multiple comparisons in case of meaningful differences.

To assess if injury modifiers modified time to RTS in the total sample, we compared time to RTS between sexes, history of concussions, time since previous concussion or other injury modifiers using a method based on median differences described elsewhere. 36 Kaplan-Meier curves were drawn to illustrate time to RTS differences between sexes (origin and start time: date of injury; end time: clearance date of unrestricted RTS). Trajectories were then assessed for statistical differences using Cox proportional hazards model. Wilcoxon rank sum tests were employed for comparing the total number of symptoms and severity scores on the SCAT5. The association of multilevel variables on return to play duration was evaluated in the total sample with Kruskal-Wallis rank tests for environment, mechanism of injury, history of concussions and time since previous concussion. For all subsequent analyses of correlations between SCAT5 results and secondary variables, only data obtained from SCAT5 assessments within the acute phase of injury (≤72 hours) were considered (n=65 SRC episodes in the early access group). 37 Spearman rank correlations were estimated between RTS duration, history of concussions, number of specialist consults and total number of SCAT5 symptoms or total symptom severity. All statistical tests were performed using RStudio (R V.4.1.0, The R Foundation for Statistical Computing). The significance level was set to p<0.05.

Equity, diversity and inclusion statement

The study population is representative of the Canadian athletic population in terms of age, gender, demographics and includes a balanced representation of female and male athletes. The study team consists of investigators from different disciplines and countries, but with a predominantly white composition and under-representation of other ethnic groups. Our study population encompasses data from the Institut national du sport du Québec, covering individuals of all genders, ethnicities and geographical regions across Canada.

Patient and public involvement

The patients or the public were not involved in the design, conduct, reporting or dissemination plans of our research.

Sample characteristics

During the 4-year period covered by this retrospective chart review, a total of 160 SRC episodes were recorded in 132 athletes with a median (IQR) age of 19.1 (17.8–22.2) years old ( table 2 ). 13 female and 10 male athletes had multiple SRC episodes during this time. The sample had a relatively balanced number of females (53.8%) and males (46.2%) with SRC included. 60% of the sample reported a history of concussion, with 35.0% reporting having experienced more than two episodes. However, most of these concussions had occurred more than 1 year before the SRC for which they were being treated. Within this sample, 33.1% of participants reported a history of injury modifiers. Importantly, the median (IQR) time to first clinic consult was 10.0 (1.0–20.0) days and the median (IQR) time to RTS was 34.0 (21.0–63.0) days in this sample ( table 3 ). The majority of SRCs occurred during training (56.3%) rather than competition (33.1%) and were mainly due to a fall (63.7%) or a hit (31.3%). The median (IQR) number of follow-up consultations and specialists consulted after the SRC were, respectively, 9 (5.0–14.3) and 3 (2.0–4.0).

Participants demographics

Sport-related concussion characteristics

Among seven sports of the total sample (n=89 SRC), the estimated incidence of athletes with SRC was highest in short-track speed skating (0.47/1000 hours; 95% CI 0.3 to 0.6), and lower in boxing, trampoline, water polo, judo, artistic swimming, and diving (0.24 (95% CI 0.0 to 0.5), 0.16 (95% CI 0.0 to 0.5), 0.13 (95% CI 0.1 to 0.2), 0.11 (95% CI 0.1 to 0.2), 0.09 (95% CI 0.0 to 0.2) and 0.06 (95% CI 0.0 to 0.1)/1000, respectively ( online supplemental material ). Furthermore, most athletes sustained an SRC in training (66.5%; 95% CI 41.0 to 92.0) rather than competition (26.0%; 95% CI 0.0 to 55.0) except for judo athletes (20.0% (95% CI 4.1 to 62.0) and 80.0% (95% CI 38.0 to 96.0), respectively). Falls were the most common injury mechanism in speed skating, trampoline and judo while hits were the most common injury mechanism in boxing, water polo, artistic swimming and diving.

Supplemental material

Access to care.

The median difference in time to RTS was 19 days (95% CI 9.3 to 28.7; p<0.001) between the early (26 (IQR 17.0–38.5) days) and late (45 (IQR 27.5–84.5) days) access groups ( table 3 ; figure 1 ). Importantly, the distribution of SRC environments was different between both groups (p=0.008). The post hoc analysis demonstrated a meaningful difference in the distribution of SRC in training and competition environments between groups (p=0.029) but not for the other comparisons. There was a meaningful difference between the groups in time to first consult (p<0.001; 95% CI −23.0 to −15.0), but no meaningful differences between groups in median age (p=0.176; 95% CI −0.3 to 1.6), sex distribution (p=0.341; 95% CI 0.7 to 2.8), concussion history (p=0.210), time since last concussion (p=0.866), mechanisms of SRC (p=0.412), the presence of modifiers (p=0.313; 95% CI 0.3 to 1.4) and the number of consulted specialists (p=0.368; 95% CI −5.4 to 1.0) or medical visits (p=0.162; 95% CI −1.0 to 3.0).

Download figure
Open in new tab
Download powerpoint

Time to return to sport following sport-related concussion as a function of group’s access to care and sex. Outliers: below=Q1−1.5×IQR; above=Q3+1.5×IQR.

The median difference in time to RTS was 6.5 days (95% CI −19.3 to 5.3; p=0.263; figure 1 ) between female (37.5 (IQR 22.0–65.3) days) and male (31.0 (IQR 20.0–48.0) days) athletes. Survival analyses highlighted an increased hazard of longer recovery trajectory in female compared with male athletes (HR 1.4; 95% CI 1.4 to 0.7; p=0.052; figure 2A ), which was mainly driven by the late (HR 1.8; 95% CI 1.8 to 0.6; p=0.019; figure 2C ) rather than the early (HR 1.1; 95% CI 1.1 to 0.9; p=0.700; figure 2B ) access group. Interestingly, a greater number of female athletes (n=15) required longer than 100 days for RTS as opposed to the male athletes (n=6). There were no meaningful differences between sexes for the total number of symptoms recorded on the SCAT5 (p=0.539; 95% CI −1.0 to 2.0) nor the total symptoms total severity score (p=0.989; 95% CI −5.0 to 5.0).

Time analysis of sex differences in the time to return to sport following sport-related concussion in the (A) total sample, as well as (B) early, and (C) late groups using survival curves with 95% confidence bands and tables of time-specific number of patients at risk (censoring proportion: 0%).

History of modifiers

SRC modifiers are presented in table 2 , and their influence on RTP is shown in table 4 . The median difference in time to RTS was 1.5 days (95% CI −10.6 to 13.6; p=0.807) between athletes with none and one episode of previous concussion, was 3.5 days (95% CI −13.9 to 19.9; p=0.728) between athletes with none and two or more episodes of previous concussion, and was 2 days (95% CI −12.4 to 15.4; p=0.832) between athletes with one and two or more episodes of previous concussion. The history of concussions (none, one, two or more) had no meaningful impact on the time to RTS (p=0.471). The median difference in time to RTS was 4.5 days (95% CI −21.0 to 30.0; p=0.729) between athletes with none and one episode of concussion in the previous year, was 2 days (95% CI −10.0 to 14.0; p=0.744) between athletes with none and one episode of concussion more than 1 year ago, and was 2.5 days (95% CI −27.7 to 22.7; p=0.846) between athletes with an episode of concussion in the previous year and more than 1 year ago. Time since the most recent concussion did not change the time to RTS (p=0.740). The longest time to RTS was observed in the late access group in which athletes had a concussion in the previous year, with a very large spread of durations (65.0 (IQR 33.0–116.5) days). The median difference in time to RTS was 3 days (95% CI −13.1 to 7.1; p=0.561) between athletes with and without other injury modifiers. The history of other injury modifiers had no meaningful influence on the time to RTS (95% CI −6.0 to 11.0; p=0.579).

Preinjury modifiers of time to return to sport following SRC

SCAT5 symptoms and severity scores

Positive associations were observed between the time to RTS and the number of initial symptoms (r=0.3; p=0.010; 95% CI 0.1 to 0.5) or initial severity score (r=0.3; p=0.008; 95% CI 0.1 to 0.5) from the SCAT5. The associations were not meaningful between the number of specialist consultations and the initial number of symptoms (r=−0.1; p=0.633; 95% CI −0.3 to 0.2) or initial severity score (r=−0.1; p=0.432; 95% CI −0.3 to 0.2). Anecdotally, most reported symptoms following SRC were ‘headache’ (86.2%) and ‘pressure in the head’ (80.0%), followed by ‘fatigue’ (72.3%), ‘neck pain’ (70.8%) and ‘not feeling right’ (67.7%; online supplemental material ).

This study is the first to report descriptive data on athletes with SRC collected across several sports during an Olympic quadrennial, including athletes who received the most recent evidence-based care at the time of data collection. Primarily, results indicate that the time to RTS in athletes engaged in Summer and Winter Olympic sports may require a median (IQR) of 34.0 (21.0–63.0) days. Importantly, findings demonstrated that athletes with earlier (≤7 days) access to multidisciplinary concussion care showed faster RTS compared with those with late access. Time to RTS exhibited large variability where sex had a meaningful influence on the recovery pathway in the late access group. Initial symptoms, but not history of concussion, were correlated with prognosis in this sample. The main reported symptoms were consistent with previous studies. 38 39

Time to RTS in Olympic sports

This study provides descriptive data on the impact of SRC monitoring programmes on recovery in elite athletes engaged in Olympic sports. As hypothesised, the median time to RTS found in this study (eg, 34.0 days) was about three times longer than those found in reports from before 2005, and 2 weeks longer than the typical median values (eg, 19.8 days) recently reported in athletic levels including youth (high heterogeneity, I 2 =99.3%). 19 These durations were also twice as long as the median unrestricted time to RTS observed among American collegiate athletes, which averages around 16 days. 9 20 21 However, they were more closely aligned with findings from collegiate athletes with slow recovery (eg, 34.7 days) and evidence from military cadets with poor access where return to duty duration was 29.4 days. 8 22 Several reasons could explain such extended time to RTS, but the most likely seems to be related to the diversity in access among these sports to multidisciplinary services (eg, 10.0 median days (1–20)), well beyond the delays experienced by collegiate athletes, for example (eg, 0.0 median days (0–2)). 40 In the total sample, the delays to first consult with the multidisciplinary clinic were notably mediated by the group with late access, whose athletes had more SRC during international competition. One of the issues for athletes engaged in Olympic sports is that they travel abroad year-round for competitions, in contrast with collegiate athletes who compete domestically. These circumstances likely make access to quality care very variable and make the follow-up of care less centralised. Also, access to resources among these sports is highly variable (eg, medal-dependant), 14 and at the discretion of the sport’s leadership (eg, sport federation), who may decide to prioritise more or fewer resources to concussion management considering the relatively low incidence of this injury. Another explanation for the longer recovery times in these athletes could be the lack of financial incentives to return to play faster, which are less prevalent among Olympic sports compared with professionals. However, the stakes of performance and return to play are still very high among these athletes.

Additionally, it is plausible that studies vary their outcome with shifting operational definitions such as resolution of symptoms, return to activities, graduated return to play or unrestricted RTS. 19 40 It is understood that resolution of symptoms may occur much earlier than return to preinjury performance levels. Finally, an aspect that has been little studied to date is the influence of the sport’s demands on the RTS. For example, acrobatic sports requiring precision/technical skills such as figure skating, trampoline and diving, which involve high visuospatial and vestibular demands, 41 might require more time to recover or elicit symptoms for longer times. Anecdotally, athletes who experienced a long time to RTS (>100 days) were mostly from precision/skill-dependent sports in this sample. The sports demand should be further considered as an injury modifier. More epidemiological reports that consider the latest guidelines are therefore necessary to gain a better understanding of the true time to RTS and impact following SRC in Olympians.

Supporting early multidisciplinary access to care

In this study, athletes who obtained early access to multidisciplinary care after SRC recovered faster than those with late access to multidisciplinary care. This result aligns with findings showing that delayed access to a healthcare practitioner delays recovery, 19 including previous evidence in a sample of patients from a sports medicine clinic (ages 12–22), indicating that the group with a delayed first clinical visit (eg, 8–20 days) was associated with a 5.8 times increased likelihood of a recovery longer than 30 days. 5 Prompt multidisciplinary approach for patients with SRC is suggested to yield greater effectiveness over usual care, 3 6 17 which is currently evaluated under randomised controlled trial. 42 Notably, early physical exercise and prescribed exercise (eg, 48 hours postinjury) are effective in improving recovery compared with strict rest or stretching. 43 44 In fact, preclinical and clinical studies have shown that exercise has the potential to improve neurotransmission, neuroplasticity and cerebral blood flow which supports that the physically trained brain enhanced recovery. 45 46 Prompt access to specialised healthcare professionals can be challenging in some contexts (eg, during international travel), and the cost of accessing medical care privately may prove further prohibitive. This barrier to recovery should be a priority for stakeholders in Olympic sports and given more consideration by health authorities.

Estimated incidences and implications

The estimated incidences of SRC were in the lower range compared with what is reported in other elite sport populations. 1 2 However, the burden of injury remained high for these sports, and the financial resources as well as expertise required to facilitate athletes’ rehabilitation was considerable (median number of consultations: 9.0). Notably, the current standard of public healthcare in Canada does not subsidise the level of support recommended following SRC as first-line care, and the financial subsidisation of this recommended care within each federation is highly dependent on the available funding, varying significantly between sports. 14 Therefore, the ongoing efforts to improve education, prevention and early recognition, modification of rules to make the environments safer and multidisciplinary care access for athletes remain crucial. 7

Strength and limitations

This unique study provides multisport characteristics following the evolution of concussion guidelines in Summer and Winter Olympic sports in North America. Notably, it features a balance between the number of female and male athletes, allowing the analysis of sex differences. 23 26 In a previous review of 171 studies informing consensus statements, samples were mostly composed of more than 80% of male participants, and more than 40% of these studies did not include female participants at all. 26 This study also included multiple non-traditional sports typically not encompassed in SRC research, feature previously identified as a key requirement of future epidemiological research. 47

However, it must be acknowledged that potential confounding factors could influence the results. For example, the number of SRC detected during the study period does not account for potentially unreported concussions. Nevertheless, this figure should be minimal because these athletes are supervised both in training and in competition by medical staff. Next, the sport types were heterogeneous, with inconsistent risk for head impacts or inconsistent sport demand which might have an influence on recovery. Furthermore, the number of participants or sex in each sport was not evenly distributed, with short-track speed skaters representing a large portion of the overall sample (32.5%), for example. Additionally, the number of participants with specific modifiers was too small in the current sample to conclude whether the presence of precise characteristics (eg, history of concussion) impacted the time to RTS. Also, the group with late access was more likely to consist of athletes who sought specialised care for persistent symptoms. These complex cases are often expected to require additional time to recover. 48 Furthermore, athletes in the late group may have sought support outside of the institute medical clinic, without a coordinated multidisciplinary approach. Therefore, the estimation of clinical consultations was tentative for this group and may represent a potential confounding factor in this study.

This is the first study to provide evidence of the prevalence of athletes with SRC and modifiers of recovery in both female and male elite-level athletes across a variety of Summer and Winter Olympic sports. There was a high variability in access to care in this group, and the median (IQR) time to RTS following SRC was 34.0 (21.0–63.0) days. Athletes with earlier access to multidisciplinary care took nearly half the time to RTS compared with those with late access. Sex had a meaningful influence on the recovery pathway in the late access group. Initial symptom number and severity score but not history of concussion were meaningful modifiers of recovery. Injury surveillance programmes targeting national sport organisations should be prioritised to help evaluate the efficacy of recommended injury monitoring programmes and to help athletes engaged in Olympic sports who travel a lot internationally have better access to care. 35 49

Ethics statements

Patient consent for publication.

Not applicable.

Ethics approval

This study involves human participants and was approved by the ethics board of Université de Montréal (certificate #2023-4052). Participants gave informed consent to participate in the study before taking part.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the members of the concussion interdisciplinary clinic of the Institut national du sport du Québec for collecting the data and for their unconditional support to the athletes.

Glover KL ,
Chandran A ,
Morris SN , et al
Patricios JS ,
Schneider KJ ,
Dvorak J , et al
Guskiewicz KM , et al
Kontos AP ,
Jorgensen-Wagers K ,
Trbovich AM , et al
Critchley ML ,
Anderson V , et al
Eliason PH ,
Galarneau J-M ,
Kolstad AT , et al
McAllister TW ,
Broglio SP ,
Katz BP , et al
Liebel SW ,
Van Pelt KL ,
Pasquina PF , et al
Pellman EJ ,
Lovell MR ,
Viano DC , et al
Casson IR , et al
McKinney J ,
Fee J , et al
McKay AKA ,
Stellingwerff T ,
Smith ES , et al
Government of Canada
Pereira LA ,
Cal Abad CC ,
Kobal R , et al
↵ COPSI - sport related concussion guidelines . Available : https://www.ownthepodium.org/en-CA/Initiatives/Sport-Science-Innovation/2018-COPSI-Network-Concussion-Guidelines [Accessed 25 May 2023 ].
McCrory P ,
Meeuwisse W ,
Dvořák J , et al
Gardner AJ ,
Quarrie KL ,
Putukian M ,
Purcell L ,
Schneider KJ , et al
Nguyen JN , et al
Lempke LB ,
Caccese JB ,
Syrydiuk RA , et al
D’Lauro C ,
Johnson BR ,
McGinty G , et al
Crossley KM ,
Bo K , et al
Covassin T ,
Harris W , et al
Swanik CB ,
Swope LM , et al
Master CL ,
Arbogast KB , et al
Walton SR ,
Kelshaw PM ,
Munce TA , et al
Barron TF , et al
Tsushima WT ,
Riegler K ,
Amalfe S , et al
Monteiro D ,
Silva F , et al
Dijkstra HP ,
Pollock N ,
Chakraverty R , et al
Clarsen B ,
Derman W , et al
Matthews JN ,
Echemendia RJ ,
Bruce JM , et al
Yeates KO ,
Räisänen AM ,
Premji Z , et al
Breedlove K ,
McAllister TW , et al
Hennig L , et al
Register-Mihalik JK ,
Guskiewicz KM ,
Marshall SW , et al
Toomey CM , et al
Mannix R , et al
Barkhoudarian G ,
Haider MN ,
Ellis M , et al
Harmon KG ,
Clugston JR ,
Dec K , et al
Carson JD ,
Lawrence DW ,
Kraft SA , et al
Martens G ,
Edouard P ,
Tscholl P , et al

Supplementary materials

Supplementary data.

This web only file has been produced by the BMJ Publishing Group from an electronic file supplied by the author(s) and has not been edited for content.

Data supplement 1

X @ThomasRomeas

Correction notice This article has been corrected since it published Online First. The ORCID details have been added for Dr Croteau.

Contributors TR, FC and SL were involved in planning, conducting and reporting the work. François Bieuzen and Magdalena Wojtowicz critically reviewed the manuscript. TR is guarantor.

Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

Competing interests None declared.

Patient and public involvement Patients and/or the public were not involved in the design, or conduct, or reporting, or dissemination plans of this research.

Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

Supplemental material This content has been supplied by the author(s). It has not been vetted by BMJ Publishing Group Limited (BMJ) and may not have been peer-reviewed. Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s) and are not endorsed by BMJ. BMJ disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the content. Where the content includes any translated material, BMJ does not warrant the accuracy and reliability of the translations (including but not limited to local regulations, clinical guidelines, terminology, drug names and drug dosages), and is not responsible for any error and/or omissions arising from translation and adaptation or otherwise.

Read the full text or download the PDF:

IMAGES

20+ Best Words to Describe Blood, Adjectives for Blood
Essay On Blood Donation As A Good Cause With [PDF]
A List of Blood Diseases and an Analysis of Each
Blood Donation Essay in English
Sem b essay anatomy
essay on blood donation in English/ blood donation essay in English / blood donation essay /

VIDEO

descriptive Essay 2 (O Level Syllabus 3247)
Descriptive Essay
Blood banking "Topic Introduction"
10 Line Blood Donation Essay in Urdu /our knowledge
EXPLANATION AND OUTLINING A DESCRIPTIVE ESSAY Part 2
Science exhibition model

COMMENTS

How to Describe Blood in Writing [100 Examples + Tips]
Table of Contents. The first thing you need to know is the type of blood you want to describe: Fresh Blood - Bright red, indicative of recent injury. Dried Blood - Darker, crusted, showing time has passed. Gushing Blood - Abundant, indicating severe injury. Oozing Blood - Slow flow, often from minor cuts. Clotted Blood - Thickened ...
Blood Descriptive Writing
Blood Descriptive Writing. As I stand on the edge, I reminisce about the city view that once calmed my tormented thoughts. The strong, cold wind, urging me to jump, to fall and forget and in unison, the onslaught of tears with the occasional traces of blood race down my face. A defeated cry jumps from my mouth and into the open air.
How to Write Gore
By Seb Reilly. Gore needs to be visceral and this can be hard to do, especially if you lack confidence in your own writing or ability. To write about gore effectively requires self-confidence, especially when overly-descriptive or detached writing will kill a scene. The words themselves do not need to be exceptionally graphic or explicit—you ...
Essay on Blood: Top 6 Essays
The amount is about 45% of the total volume of blood. Essay # 2. Blood Plasma in Humans: Blood plasma or serum is a non-cellular fluid, of yellow colour and alkaline in nature. It is mainly consisting of water and other solid substances. 1. Water-90 to 92%. 2. Solid substances - 8 to 10%.
Blood Descriptive Writing
Blood Descriptive Writing; Blood Descriptive Writing. Improved Essays. 1011 Words; 5 Pages; Open Document. Essay Sample Check Writing Quality. Show More. A beam of sunlight trickled into the room, somehow managing to find a gap on the thick black curtains hanging dangerously on the wall. It hit my skin, burning with excruciating pain.
How to Write a Descriptive Essay
How to Write a Descriptive Essay | Example & Tips
Guide to a Perfect Descriptive Essay [Examples & Outline Included]
The use of literary devices such as personification and metaphor makes the banyan tree in the second example come to life. This is how you can make your writing more vivid, descriptive, and poetic. 2. Use your senses. Sensory descriptors are one of the most important aspects of a descriptive essay.
Old Blood Descriptive Writing
Old Blood Descriptive Writing. Decent Essays. 439 Words. 2 Pages. Open Document. Vice-gripping brutal pain shot through my protruding abdomen as if my assailant were standing above me plunging rigorously over and over again with a dull butcher's knife. Beads of cold sweat ran down my forehead and pasted my hair in place there, as I rolled ...
Descriptive Essays
Descriptive Essays - Purdue OWL
How to Write a Descriptive Essay
We have a few helpful tips to share. 1. Brainstorming and Organizing Your Ideas. Your first step should be to brainstorm ideas. Think about the qualities of what you're describing. As well as physical qualities, make notes about any thoughts, memories, and emotions you associate with your subject matter. This brainstorming will give you the ...
What is a Descriptive Essay? How to Write It (with Examples)
A descriptive essay's primary goal is to captivate the reader by writing a thorough and vivid explanation of the subject matter, while appealing to their various senses. A list of additional goals is as follows: - Spark feeling and imagination. - Create a vivid experience. - Paint a mental picture. - Pique curiosity.
Descriptive Essay: Definition, Format & Writing Tips
Descriptive Essay: Definition, Format & Writing Tips
How to Write a Descriptive Essay
How to Start a Descriptive Essay. Making sure you choose the right topic is the first hurdle to cross. A topic for a descriptive essay is vital because it is the main subject you will be writing about. Spend at least 20 minutes brainstorming different topic ideas and make sure you choose a topic that you know well.
4.14: Descriptive Essays
So you will be called upon to use your descriptive writing skills in many different kinds of essays. You can't compare two items unless you describe them. You can't illustrate abstract concepts or make them vivid and detailed without concrete description. We have five senses: touch, taste, smell, sight, and sound.
How to Write a Descriptive Essay (2021 Edition)
A descriptive essay is both expository and creative. When you write a descriptive essay, you use rich diction to make your chosen subject come alive. Your job is to describe in detail a person, place, or thing. You describe things every day of your life. Just think: you tell your friend about the date you had last night in great detail, or you describe how good that bowl of ramen was yesterday ...
Descriptive Essay
Descriptive essays are like word paintings that contain personal and descriptive details and these are mostly assigned to students of creative writing. ... Storytelling and drama are the life and blood of a good descriptive essay. It turns your essay into an exciting and interesting piece of writing. However, be subtle about adding drama to ...
How to Write a Descriptive Essay: Step-by-Step Guide
How to Write a Strong Descriptive Essay
Descriptive Essay: Topics, Outline and Writing Tips
Descriptive essay is one of the hardest forms of writing. To master descriptive writing, you must be creative and craft a scene that all readers can picture with words alone. This freedom and creativity can make it one of the most rewarding and fun essays to write. It is the backbone of all artful writing like poetry, novels, and even ...
Best Descriptive Essays: Examples & How-to Guide [+ Tips]
Here are two introductions we might come up with: Example: Example 1: A stadium is a place where sports, concerts, or other events take place. Usually, there will be a field or a stage, which most often will be surrounded completely or partially by a structure where spectators can sit or stand to watch. Example:
Descriptive Essay
Descriptive Essay | Definition, Format & Examples - Lesson
How to Write a Descriptive Essay in 7 Steps
How to Write a Descriptive Essay in 7 Steps. Written by MasterClass. Last updated: Jun 7, 2021 • 3 min read. Descriptive essays teach students the basics of writing and self-expression. Depending on your line of work and your writing goals, you may continue writing descriptive essays well into your professional career.
Blood Descriptive Writing
Blood Descriptive Writing. Blood poured out of the wound in my side, and I gripped it as tears sprung to my eyes. I could feel every little nerve in my body slowly becoming numb as my body began to shut down. My heart began to beat slower, and my eyes grew heavy.
15 Good Descriptive Essay Examples for All Students
Amazing Descriptive Essay Examples for Your Help
Trends of Toxoplasma gondii and common transfusable venereal infections
This cross-sectional descriptive study involved 420 blood donors' serum samples. Samples were gathered randomly from blood donor volunteers in Menoufia University hospitals' blood banks ...
Where is the research on sport-related concussion in Olympic athletes
Objectives This cohort study reported descriptive statistics in athletes engaged in Summer and Winter Olympic sports who sustained a sport-related concussion (SRC) and assessed the impact of access to multidisciplinary care and injury modifiers on recovery. Methods 133 athletes formed two subgroups treated in a Canadian sport institute medical clinic: earlier (≤7 days) and late (≥8 days ...

How to Describe Blood in Writing [100 Examples + Tips]

Types of Blood Descriptions

Traits and Characteristics of Blood for Descriptions

Consistency

How to Describe Blood on Hands in a Story

How to Describe Blood on the Floor in a Story

How Do You Describe Blood Without Saying Blood

50 Best Words to Describe Blood in a Story

50 Best Phrases to Describe Blood in a Story

3 Examples of Describing Blood in Writing

Example 1: Horror Novel

Example 2: Medical Drama

Example 3: Fantasy Adventure

Final Thoughts: How to Describe Blood in Writing

Related Posts

How to Write Gore

Terminology

Further Reading

Privacy Overview

Essay on Blood: Top 6 Essays | Circulatory System | Human Physiology

Essay on Blood

ADVERTISEMENTS: (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Essay # 1. Blood and Its Composition in Humans:

Essay # 2. Blood Plasma in Humans:

Have a language expert improve your writing

How to Write a Descriptive Essay | Example & Tips

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text

Table of contents

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

Use figurative language

Use your senses

Choose the right words

Receive feedback on language, structure, and formatting

Cite this Scribbr article

Is this article helpful?

Jack Caulfield

Checklist: Dissertation Proposal

Examples: Edited Papers

What is a descriptive essay?

Descriptive essay topics

Descriptive essay structure

1. Introduction

2. Body paragraph

3. Conclusion

How to write a descriptive essay

1. Use figures of speech

2. Use your senses

3. Use evocative language

Descriptive essay outline

Descriptive essay example

Frequently Asked Questions

Your vs. You’re: When to Use Your and You’re

Descriptive Essays

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

What is a descriptive essay?

How to Write a Descriptive Essay

1. Brainstorming and Organizing Your Ideas

2. Use Vivid, Sensory Language

Find this useful?

3. Show, Don’t Tell

4. Editing and Proofreading Your Descriptive Essay

Share this article:

Got content that needs a quick turnaround? Let us polish your work. Explore our editorial business services.

Free Email Newsletter Template

How to Write a Nonprofit Grant Proposal

How to Use Infographics to Boost Your Presentation

Why Interactive PDFs Are Better for Engagement

Seven Key Strategies for Voice Search Optimization

Five Creative Ways to Showcase Your Digital Portfolio

Make sure your writing is the best it can be with our expert English proofreading and editing.

What is a Descriptive Essay? How to Write It (with Examples)

Table of Contents

How to write a descriptive essay using a structured outline

Characteristics of descriptive essay s

How to write a descriptive essay, with examples

Related Reads:

4 Types of Transition Words for Research Papers

Descriptive Essay: Your Guide to Writing an Effective One

What is a Descriptive Essay?

What Is the Purpose of a Descriptive Essay?

Need Some Help?