Blushing Thesaurus

She happily used to swim naked in the river Chertwell with all the other Oxford children, but it would be quite different with Will, and she blushed even to think of it.

—Philip Pullman, The Amber Spyglass (His Dark Materials #3)

If you were a character in a book, chances are your face would be turning red more often than the average real-life person. After all, fictional characters are perpetually driven into high-octane emotions: embarrassment, nervousness, anxiety, excitement, rage… Intense emotions spike up adrenaline, which rushes via the bloodstream through the body and up to the face. Hence those tell-tale signs of blushing and flushing: a sudden sensation of heat, and sometimes, a reddening of the face.

Blushing or flushing?

The word blushing is usually limited to embarrassment and shame, while flushing is more versatile, encompassing all sorts of adrenaline-fueled emotions such as guilt, anger, excitement, and arousal, not to mention physical exertion, deep concentration, inebriation, fever, and very hot or cold weather. Don’t knock flushing till you’ve tried it!

Point of view matters!

• For a blushing or flushing point-of-view (POV) character, you might focus on inner sensations: heat, the flow of blood. To anchor the sensation within a POV character’s perspective, try starting with “she felt”/“she could feel”: “She felt the blood rise to her face”; “She could feel her cheeks burning.”

• For a blushing or flushing non-POV character, it makes sense to focus on outer observations: the reddening of the character’s skin. “His face was flushed”; “His cheeks went bright red.”

Getting specific

In fiction, descriptions of blushing and flushing are often enhanced by an emotion word (e.g., resentment, nervously) or other quality (e.g., feverish, absorbed, exhaustion), which fills out the picture. Take your cue from master wordsmiths:

“It doesna matter who—” Jenny began, but Laoghaire rounded on her, face flushed with fury. “Oh, it matters!”

—Diana Gabaldon, Written in My Own Heart’s Blood (Outlander #8)

Thomas felt his mouth drop open—felt anger redden his face.

—James Dashner, The Maze Runner

And there I am, blushing and confused, made beautiful by Cinna’s hands, desirable by Peeta’s confession, tragic by circumstance, and by all accounts, unforgettable.

—Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games

A thousand and one ways to blush

Ready to jazz up your descriptions of blushing and flushing? Feel free to borrow any of the words and phrases in the bank below, and customize to your heart’s desire.

BLUSHING THESAURUS

BODY PARTS THAT BLUSH/FLUSH

• the face

• the cheeks

• the ears, the tips of the ears

• the neck, the back of the neck

• the skin, the whole body, head to toe

• blood (responsible for the blushing)

VERBS

• blushed, flushed, felt

• rose, mounted, rolled up, crept up

• rushed, ran, surged, broke out

• settled, gathered

• touched, brushed

• bloomed, flooded, spread, washed

• tingled, pricked, prickled, crawled

• dotted, blotched

• warmed, heated, glowed

• burned, blazed, flamed, scorched, seared, singed, stung

• turned (colour), went (colour), grew (colour)

• coloured, reddened, purpled, tinted, stained, tinged

NOUNS

• a blush, a flush, blood

• a rush, a wave, a surge, a bloom

• a hint, a touch, a smidge

• prickles, pins and needles

• warmth, heat, a glow, a blaze, a flame, a scorch, a sting

• colour, a tint, a shade, a hue, a cast, a stain

• a tinge, a trace, a dash, a brush, a wash

• spots, dots, blotches, splotches, patches

ADJECTIVES

• flushed, blushing

• faint, light, slight, delicate, dull

• bright, brilliant, vivid, deep, dark, dusky, rich, furious, violent, lurid

• warm, heated, hot, red-hot, glowing, feverish

• fiery, flaming, ablaze, blazing, scorched, stinging

• tingling, prickling, creeping, crawling

• pink, pinkish, rose, rosy

• red, reddish, ruddy, red-faced, red-hot

• florid, mottled

• beet red, brick red, radish red, tomato red, strawberry red, lobster red, ruby red

• scarlet, crimson, puce, carmine, maroon

• magenta, purple

EXAMPLE PHRASES

GENERAL

• she felt herself blushing

• she blushed furiously

• her face was flushed

• she flushed clear to her temples

• she flushed with pleasure

• indignation flushed her face

• the flush on her face deepened

• a slight flush crept up her neck

• her cheeks were bright

• a delicate bloom on her cheeks

• there was a glow of anticipation on her cheeks

• a rush ran up and down her body

• embarrassment tingled down her neck

• shame crept up her neck

• something sent prickles up her neck

• the blood ran to her face

• blood rose stinging to her cheeks

• she felt the blood surging into her face

• blood rushed up into her cheeks

BLUSHING & HEAT

• she felt her skin beginning to warm

• she felt her face heating up

• she could feel the heat rising to her face

• warmth gathered in her face

• she flushed hotly

• her face felt hot

• her ears burned

• her face felt like it was on fire

• her cheeks caught fire

• her cheeks burned with shame

• her cheeks stung with heat

• her cheeks flaming

• cheeks ablaze

• a rush of blood warmed her cheeks

• a fiery glow rose to her cheeks

• a flame of anger touched her cheeks

• the colour burned in blotches on her cheeks

• she could feel the heat settling over her cheeks and forehead

• she felt a wave of heat rolling up her neck

• she could feel the heat rushing from under her collar

• she felt herself grow warm all over

BLUSHING & COLOUR

• the bright tint of her cheeks

• her colour rose

• her colour was high

• a flush of colour mounted her cheeks

• she felt the colour rise in her cheeks

• she could feel the colour creeping up her cheeks

• colour flooded her face

• blotches of colour on her cheeks

• a flush stained her face

• a flush bloomed across her face

• a delicate blush coloured her cheeks

• frustration coloured her cheeks

• she turned red

• she grew pink in the face

• she blushed crimson

• she was red-faced with embarrassment

• her face was puce

• it made her face go beet red

• her face darkened with blood

• her ears went pink

• she went slightly pink around the ears

• a faint pink tinged the tips of her ears

• the tips of her ears glowed red

• her face reddened

• she felt herself reddening uncomfortably

• her cheeks blazed brick red

• she glowed bright pink

• she went red to the roots of her hair

• her face turned the colour of a radish

• she turned a fiery shade of scarlet

• her cheeks were a brilliant shade of magenta

• there was red shame on her face

• her face broke out in ruddy blotches of anger

Something missing?

Got a blushing/flushing word or phrase of your own to add to the list? Share in the comments below.

Want more?

Head on over to the Resources page for more fiction thesaurus word lists.