List of character flaws

The almost-good 🤷🏻‍♀️

Most of these character flaws are

more annoying than harmful;
some are even a little endearing.
Others do have the potential to
harm, but rarely evolve to that
extent. If you’re looking for a
minor flaw to round out your
likable protagonist, this section is
for you!

1. Awkward – socially uneasy and

uncomfortable. Example: Cath
Avery in Fangirl.

2. Boring – dull, tedious,

uninteresting (not to be confused
with a flat character, who’s not
even developed enough to be
boring). Example: Mary Bennet
in Pride and Prejudice.
3. Capricious – given to flights of
fancy and impulsive
behaviors. Example: Lily Bart
in The House of Mirth.

4. Childish – silly, immature, or

innocent. Example: Peter in Peter
Pan.

5. Clumsy – uncoordinated and

fumbling; often accident-
prone. Example: Bella Swan
in Twilight.

6. Foolish – lacking good

judgment or common
sense. Example: Bertie Wooster
in Jeeves and Wooster.

7. Gossipy – inclined to spread

rumors or talk about others
behind their backs. Example: Mrs.
Jennings in Sense and Sensibility.

8. Gullible – easily fooled or

persuaded to believe
something. Example: Valentine
Michael Smith in Stranger in a
Strange Land.

9. Humorless – having no sense

of humor;
solemn. Example: Percy Weasley
in Harry Potter.

10. Lazy – unwilling to work;

slothful. Example: Gervaise
Macquart in L'Assommoir.

11. Meek – overly gentle and

submissive. Example: Charlie
Kelmeckis in The Perks of Being a
Wallflower.

12. Mischievous – playfully

troublesome; rascally or
roguish. Example: Tom Sawyer
in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

13. Naïve – childlike, trusting,

unworldly. Example: Wilbur
in Charlotte’s Web.
14. Obnoxious – highly irritating
and unpleasant. Example: Eustace
Scrubb in Voyage of the Dawn
Treader.

15. Prideful – having a lofty

opinion of oneself and rarely
admitting to being
wrong. Example: Mr. Darcy
in Pride and Prejudice.

16. Shallow – having few

profound thoughts and caring
only for insignificant
things. Example: Daisy Buchanan
in The Great Gatsby.

17. Skeptical – doubtful or

disbelieving. Example: Lucy’s
siblings (at first) in The Lion, The
Witch, and the Wardrobe.

18. Spacey – having one’s head in

the clouds; absent-
minded. Example: Luna Lovegood
in Harry Potter.
19. Spoiled – bratty and self-
centered as a result of
overindulgence. Example: Mary
Lennox (at first) in The Secret
Garden.

20. Stubborn – willful and

headstrong; refusing to give
up. Example: Anne Shirley
in Anne of Green Gables.

21. Tactless – not very nuanced or

sensitive in dealings with
others. Example: Hermes in Circe.

22. Vain – preoccupied with one’s

physical
appearance. Example: Amy March
in Little Women.

Do even these “mild” character flaws

seem too extreme to you? Then maybe
you’re not looking for a flaw, per se, but
an unusual quirk or mannerism to bring
your characters to life! We’ve got you
covered with this list of 150+ useful
character quirks and this BONUS list
of 150+ powerful mannerisms to help
define your characters.
The bad 😬

These character flaws should be

taken more seriously: they can
impact a character’s life quite
heavily, as well as the lives of
those around them. From
adultery to greed to pure
stupidity, if you choose one of
these flaws for your character,
make sure you’ve carefully
considered how it will shape their
story — and indeed, whether that
journey will end with them
overcoming their limitations or
atoning for their sins.

23. Adulterous – cheating on

one’s partner or
spouse. Example: John Proctor
in The Crucible.

24. Anxious – experiencing

frequent nerves or
apprehension. Example: Craig
Gilner in It’s Kind of a Funny
Story.

25. Apathetic – having little

interest in or enthusiasm for
life. Example: The narrator
in Fight Club.

26. Arrogant – haughty,

conceited, exaggeratedly self-
important. Example: Draco
Malfoy in Harry Potter.

27. Belligerent – hostile and

aggressive, even when
unprovoked. Example: Curley
in Of Mice and Men.

28. Bitter – resentful and

unpleasant because of a past
experience. Example: Miss
Havisham in Great Expectations.

29. Cowardly – lacking the

courage to stand up for what’s
right. Example: Arthur
Dimmesdale in The Scarlet Letter.

30. Dishonest – lying or behaving

in a deceitful manner, usually to
take advantage of
others. Example: George
Wickham in Pride and Prejudice.

31. Envious – wanting to possess

what another has (may be a
physical object or a character
trait). Example: Gene Forrester
in A Separate Peace.

32. Greedy – always desiring

more (food, wealth, attention,
etc.), even to their own
detriment. Example: Augustus
Gloop in Charlie and the
Chocolate Factory.

33. Hedonistic – indulging

completely in the pursuit of
pleasure. Example: Dorian Gray
in The Picture of Dorian Gray.
34. Hubristic – excessively self-
confident in one’s ideas or
abilities. Example: Icarus in
the Metamorphoses.

35. Hypocritical – acting in

opposition to one’s beliefs or
proclamations about others,
typically because one believes
they are “above”
them. Example: Mr. Brocklehurst
in Jane Eyre.

36. Ignorant – possessing little

practical knowledge or awareness
of the world. Example: Effie
Trinket in The Hunger Games.

37. Incompetent – unable to

perform basic tasks. Example: Mr.
Poe in A Series of Unfortunate
Events.

38. Inconsiderate – caring little

for the feelings of
others. Example: Sherlock
Holmes in Sherlock Holmes.

39. Judgmental – critical and

disapproving, often in an
outspoken way. Example: Holden
Caulfield in The Catcher in the
Rye.

40. Lustful – overwhelmed with

sexual desire. Example: Humbert
Humbert in Lolita.

41. Morally gray – neither good

nor evil in a conventional sense;
characterized by moral
ambiguity. Example: Kaz Brekker
in Six of Crows.

42. Obsequious – so deferential

and flattering as to be
unsettling. Example: Uriah Heep
in David Copperfield.
43. Possessive – overprotective
and controlling. Example: Edward
Cullen in Twilight.

44. Quixotic – overly idealistic

and hindered by their own
expectations. Example: Emma
Bovary in Madame Bovary.

45. Rigid – utterly inflexible in

one’s principles, even when
presented with reason to
change. Example: Javert in Les
Misérables.

46. Selfish – being solely

concerned with one’s own needs
and desires. Example: Scarlett
O’Hara (at first) in Gone With the
Wind.

47. Short-tempered – quick to

anger. Example: Jack Torrance
in The Shining.
48. Spiteful – bitter and
malicious. Example: Severus
Snape in Harry Potter.

49. Stingy – mean and

ungenerous. Example: Ebenezer
Scrooge in A Christmas Carol.

50. Stupid – showing little

intelligence in one’s decisions or
actions. Example: Joffrey
Baratheon in A Song of Ice and
Fire.

51. Vengeful – seeking

ramifications for others as a form
of revenge. Example: Edmond
Dantès in The Count of Monte
Cristo (though to be fair, he’s
pretty justified).

52. Weak-willed – timid and

spineless. Example: Peter
Pettigrew in Harry Potter.
The ugly ☠️

Now for the character flaws you’ll

most often see in outright villains:
cruelty, treachery, a total lack of
remorse, and so on. While it’s
certainly fascinating to think
about how such deep-seated
flaws can be effectively balanced
with other traits, take caution!
Some readers may be unable to
forgive protagonists who
demonstrate these flaws, even
over the course of multi-
book character arcs to show
they’ve changed.

That said, if you’re looking for a

challenge (or aiming to create
that once-in-a-blue
moon egregious
antihero who’s just sympathetic
enough to work), have at it. But
don’t say we didn’t warn you —
and consider getting a sensitivity
reader if you’re working with a
flaw that involves a delicate issue,
like bigotry or abuse.

53. Abusive – engaging in habitual

and extreme cruelty or
violence. Example: Alphonso
in The Color Purple.

54. Bigoted – harboring fierce,

immovable prejudices about a
certain group. Example: Dolores
Umbridge in Harry Potter.

55. Cruel – willfully causing pain

and suffering to
others. Example: Heathcliff
in Wuthering Heights.

56. Disloyal – failing to remain

true to the person/entity to
whom one has pledged their
allegiance. Example: Brutus
in Julius Caesar.

57. Fanatical – extremely zealous

to the point of
delusion. Example: Annie Wilkes
in Misery.

58. Intolerant – narrow-minded

and unaccepting of others,
sometimes to the point of
violence. Example: Bob Ewell
in To Kill a Mockingbird.

59. Machiavellian – cunning,

manipulative, and unscrupulous
in one’s schemes. Example: Tom
Ripley in The Talented Mr. Ripley.

60. Manipulative – conniving and

controlling others to get what
one wants. Example: Amy Dunne
in Gone Girl.

61. Murderous – desiring to kill;

homicidal. Example: Hannibal
Lecter in Silence of the Lambs.

62. Neglectful – failing to give

proper care or attention to
someone or
something. Example: Paul
Dombey in Dombey and Son.

63. Obsessive – so consumed by a

single subject that one cannot
function
normally. Example: Captain Ahab
in Moby-Dick.

64. Oppressive – brutally

authoritarian toward a group of
people considered
“lesser.” Example: The
Commanders of Gilead in The
Handmaid’s Tale.

65. Paranoid – unusually

suspicious, mistrustful, or
nervous that something bad will
happen to
them. Example: Raskolnikov
in Crime and Punishment.

66. Remorseless – feeling no

shame, regret, or sympathy when
they’ve done something
wrong. Example: Anthony James
Marston in And Then There Were
None.

67. Sadistic – taking pleasure in

inflicting pain or humiliation
upon others. Example: Nurse
Ratched in One Flew Over the
Cuckoo’s Nest.

68. Self-destructive – acting in

such a way as to destroy one’s
own health and/or
happiness. Example: Anna
in Anna Karenina.

69. Treacherous – deeply disloyal

and traitorous, usually for
personal gain. Example: Iago
in Othello.

70. Violent – viciously, physically

harmful to
others. Example: Patrick Bateman
in American Psycho.