100 Examples of Atmosphere

John Spacey, November 25, 2022

Atmosphere is the overall emotional impression created by something. This is mostly applied to literature where atmosphere is the mood that a story builds up. It is also possible for people, places and things to have an atmosphere. For example, a jazz club with a lively and nostalgic atmosphere. The following are common examples of atmosphere.

Absurd	Accepting
Accidental	Adventurous
Alluring	Austere
Beautiful	Bombastic
Boring	Calm
Casual	Charming
Comical	Composed
Confident	Contradictory
Cool	Cynical
Dark	Dazzling
Decent	Decorous
Desolate	Desperate
Diabolic	Dignified
Dramatic	Dreadful
Dreamlike	Dreary
Dull	Easygoing
Elegant	Erratic
Fantastical	Farcical
Fast	Fearless
Fearsome	Flamboyant
Flat	Flowery
Formal	Formidable
Garish	Grandiose
Grave	Happy
Heavy	Intense
Ironical	Lavish
Lively	Majestic
Noble	Nostalgic
Ornate	Ostentatious
Overblown	Peaceful
Plain	Posh
Proper	Puffy
Quaint	Quiet
Random	Refined
Relaxed	Romantic
Satirical	Scary
Sensitive	Sentimental
Serious	Smug
Solemn	Somber
Sophisticated	Spooky
Stark	Strange
Stylish	Sumptuous
Surreal	Suspenseful
Suspicious	Tacky
Tedious	Terrifying
Touching	Tragic
Tranquil	Turgid
Uninspired	Unpredictable
Unreal	Unstable
Unsteady	Volatile

People may use significant creative license when describing the atmosphere of things. Atmosphere is typically described with an adjective such as calm but could be described with a noun such as paradise or January. For example, a story that has the atmosphere of rain on a cold January morning.

Etymology

The word atmosphere originates with the ancient Greek words atmos "vapor, steam" and sphaira "sphere." Atmosphere is primarily used to describe the layer of gases that envelop a planet. Its use to describe creative works, places, things and people is an analogy to a feeling that surrounds and hangs in the air.

Overview: Atmosphere
Type	Literature
Definition	The overall emotional impression created by something.
Commonly Applied To	Literature Creative Works Places People
Related Concepts	Literature »