20 words for SHAPES in English

YouTube video

Vocabulary Builder Courses

Today we’re going to do a vocabulary with pictures lesson to help you learn and pronounce names of shapes in English, both two-dimensional and three-dimensional ones.

You’ll learn both the noun form (the name of the shape itself) and the adjective form (how to describe something else with this shape) – in some cases those are the same, and in other cases they’re different.

Have you ever wanted to say something in English, but you just couldn’t think of the right word? That’s a vocabulary problem, and it can be really frustrating! If you want to expand your vocabulary fast, come join my Vocabulary Builder Courses.

Not only do they have lessons that are full of useful words and pictures, but they also have quizzes and exercises to help you put the new words into practice right away.

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English

2D shapes in English

Let’s start with our basic shapes – make sure to listen and repeat after me to practice pronouncing them.

square (n. / adj.)

The word square is both a noun and an adjective. So we would say “this is a blue square” and “this is a square photo.”

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


rectangle (n.) / rectangular (adj.)

The noun is rectangle and the adjective is rectangular. So we would say “this is an orange rectangle” and “this is a rectangular photo.” – the adjective, rectangular, describes something else (the photo)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


triangle (n.) / triangular (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


circle (n.) / circular (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


oval (n. / adj.)

The noun and adjective form are the same – this is an oval mirror.

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


semicircle (n.) / semicircular (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


crescent (n.) / crescent-shaped (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


diamond (n.) / diamond-shaped (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


pentagon (n.) / pentagonal (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


hexagon (n.) / hexagonal (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


octagon (n.) / octagonal (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


trapezoid (n.) / trapezoidal (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


parallelogram (n.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English

We don’t use this one as an adjective.


3D shapes in English

cube (n.) / cubic (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


sphere (n.) / spherical (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


cylinder (n.) / cylindrical (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


tube (n.) / tubular (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


cone (n.) / conical (adj.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English


pyramid (n.)

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English

We don’t really use this as an adjective, but I suppose you could say pyramid-shaped


torus (n.) / donut (n.) – more common

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English

This shape is technically called a torus, but most people outside the fields of math and physics would just call it a donut, or describe something as donut-shaped.

Now if you really want to go crazy and get into geometry, there are some other terms for more unusual shapes, but here at Espresso English I always want to teach you the most common and practical vocabulary that we actually use in daily life.

And that’s the approach I used when I created my Vocabulary Builder Courses – out of the hundreds of thousands of words in the English language, I selected very useful ones that will help you express yourself better. So go check out the Vocabulary Builder to continue learning.

All right, that brings us to the end of today’s lesson. Thanks for watching and I’ll talk to you in the next one!

Want to increase your vocabulary
& improve your fluency?

20 words for SHAPES in English Espresso English

Learn more & Sign up