Face it — sometimes you must give your readers a countenance-based clue about what a character or a subject is feeling. First try conveying emotions indirectly or through dialogue, but if you must fall back on a descriptive term, try for precision:
1.
Absent: preoccupied
2.
Agonized: as if in pain or tormented
3.
Alluring: attractive, in the sense of arousing desire
4.
Appealing: attractive, in the sense of encouraging
goodwill and/or interest
5.
Beatific: see
blissful
6.
Bilious: ill-natured
7.
Black: angry or sad, or see
hostile
8.
Bleak: see
grim and
hopeless
9.
Blinking: surprise, or lack of concern
10.
Blissful: showing a state of
happiness or divine contentment
11.
Blithe: carefree, lighthearted, or heedlessly indifferent
12.
Brooding: see
anxious and
gloomy
13.
Bug eyed: frightened or surprised
14.
Chagrined: humiliated or disappointed
15.
Cheeky: cocky, insolent
16.
Cheerless: sad
17.
Choleric: hot-tempered, irate
18.
Coy: flirtily playful, or evasive
19.
Crestfallen: see
despondent
20.
Darkly: with depressed or malevolent feelings
21.
Deadpan: expressionless, to conceal emotion or heighten humor
22.
Dejected: see
despondent
23.
Derisive: see
sardonic
24.
Despondent: depressed or discouraged
25.
Doleful: sad or afflicted
26.
Dour: stern or obstinate; see also
despondent
27.
Downcast: see
despondent
28.
Dreamy: distracted by daydreaming or fantasizing
29.
Ecstatic: delighted or entranced
30.
Etched: see
fixed
31.
Faint: cowardly, weak, or barely perceptible
32.
Fixed: concentrated or immobile
33.
Furtive: stealthy
34.
Gazing: staring intently
35.
Glancing: staring briefly as if curious but evasive
36.
Glaring: see
hostile
37.
Glazed: expressionless due to fatigue or confusion
38.
Gloomy: see
despondent and
sullen
39.
Glowering: annoyed or angry
40.
Glowing: see
radiant
41.
Grim: see
despondent; also, fatalistic or pessimistic
42.
Grave: serious, expressing emotion due to loss or sadness
43.
Haunted: frightened, worried, or guilty
44.
Hopeless: depressed by a lack of encouragement or optimism
45.
Hostile: aggressively angry, intimidating, or resistant
46.
Hunted: tense as if worried about pursuit
47.
Impassive: see
deadpan
48.
Inscrutable: mysterious, unreadable
49.
Jeering: insulting or mocking
50.
Languid: lazy or weak
51.
Leering: see
meaningful; also, sexually suggestive
52.
Meaningful: to convey an implicit connotation or shared secret
53.
Mild: easygoing
54.
Mischievous: annoyingly or maliciously playful
55.
Moody: see
sullen
56.
Pained: affected with discomfort or pain
57.
Pallid: see
wan
58.
Peering: with curiosity or suspicion
59.
Peeved: annoyed
60.
Petulant: see
cheeky and
peeved
61.
Pitying: sympathetic
62.
Pleading: seeking apology or assistance
63.
Pouting: see
sullen
64.
Quizzical: questioning or confused
65.
Radiant: bright, happy
66.
Roguish: see
mischievous
67.
Sanguine: bloodthirsty, confident
68.
Sardonic: mocking
69.
Scornful: contemptuous or mocking
70.
Scowling: displeased or threatening
71.
Searching: curious or suspicious
72.
Set: see
fixed
73.
Shamefaced: ashamed or bashful
74.
Slack-jawed: dumbfounded or surprised
75.
Sly: cunning; see also
furtive and
mischievous
76.
Snarling: surly
77.
Sneering: see
scornful
78.
Somber: see
grave
79.
Sour: unpleasant
80.
Stolid: inexpressive
81.
Straight-faced: see
deadpan
82.
Sulky: see
sullen
83.
Sullen: resentful
84.
Taunting: see
jeering
85.
Taut: high-strung
86.
Tense: see
taut
87.
Tight: see
pained and
taut
88.
Unblinking: see
fixed
89.
Vacant: blank or stupid looking
90.
Veiled: see
inscrutable
91.
Wan: pale, sickly; see also
faint
92.
Wary: cautious or cunning
93.
Wide eyed: frightened or surprised
94.
Wild eyed: excited, frightened, or stressful
95.
Wistful: yearning or sadly thoughtful
96.
Withering: devastating; see also
wrathful
97.
Woeful: full of grief or lamentation
98.
Wolfish: see
leering and
mischievous
99.
Wrathful: indignant or vengeful
100.
Wry: twisted or crooked to express cleverness or a dark or ironic feeling
