happy Hear it!

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happy definition

happy (hapē)

adjective happier -·pier, happiest -·pi·est

  1. favored by circumstances; lucky; fortunate
  2. having, showing, or causing a feeling of great pleasure, contentment, joy, etc.; joyous; glad; pleased
  3. exactly appropriate to the occasion; suitable and clever; apt; felicitous a happy suggestion
  4. intoxicated, or irresponsibly quick to act, as if intoxicated: sometimes used in hyphenated compounds

Etymology: ME happi < hap: see hap

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:
happy Synonyms

happy

modif.

  1. In good humor

    joyous, joyful, merry, mirthful, glad, gleeful, delighted, cheerful, gay, captivated, blest, laughing, contented, genial, convivial, satisfied, rapturous, enraptured, relieved, congenial, cheery, blithe, jolly, hilarious, sparkling, enchanted, unalloyed, transported, rejoicing, blissful, jovial, jocund, delightful, delirious, exhilarated, cloudless, rhapsodic, rapt, enrapt, gladsome, pleased, gratified, peaceful, comfortable, beatific, intoxicated, debonair, light, bright, buoyant, ecstatic, charmed, bonny, pleasant, exultant, hearty, overjoyed, well, lighthearted, lightsome, radiant, vivacious, sunny, smiling, content, sprightful, zesty, animated, zestful, lively, spirited, exuberant, good-humored, elated, frisky, frolicsome, expressing happiness, jubilant, sportive, rollicking, playful, thrilled, dashing, fun-loving, gladdened, Elysian, jaunty, breezy, carefree, at peace, in good spirits, in high spirits, happy as a lark, happy as the day is long, of good cheer, in ecstasies, flushed with excitement, flushed with pleasure, chipper*, perky*, peppy*, fit*, beside oneself*, full of beans*, bubbling over*, tickled*, happy-go-lucky*, in seventh heaven*.

    Antonyms sorrowful, sad*, melancholy. *

  2. Expressive of good humor

    laughing, smiling, shouting, cheering, cavorting, sparkling, giggling, chuckling, jesting, amusing, backslapping, joking, roaring, applauding, guffawing, celebrating, carousing, reveling, festive, making whoopee*, kicking up one's heels*, having a hot time*, raising hell*.

    Antonyms crying, weeping*, mourning. *

  3. Fortunate or apt

    nice, felicitous, right; see fortunate 1.

happy generally suggests a feeling of great pleasure, contentment, etc. a happy marriage; glad implies more strongly an exultant feeling of joy your letter made her so glad, but both glad and happy are commonly used in merely polite formulas expressing gratification I'm glad, or happy, to have met you; cheerful implies a steady display of bright spirits, optimism, etc. he's always cheerful in the morning; joyful and joyous both imply great elation and rejoicing, the former generally because of a particular event, and the latter as a matter of usual temperament the joyful throngs, a joyous family


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

happy Usage Examples

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • keep: Like any major social change, you're never going to succeed in keeping everyone happy all of the time.

Modifies a noun

  • ending: Maybe, in the end, I'm just a sucker for a happy ending.

Modifying Another Word

  • quite: I'm actually quite happy preparing my own food.

Infinitive complement

  • discuss: We're always happy to discuss your unique requirements!

Used with adjective complement

  • seem: They all seem happy to be having a short break from their normal work.

Preposition: with

  • outcome: This really is the ' gold standard ' of dentistry and I'm absolutely 100 % happy with the outcome.
happy usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

happy quotes

Happy is the country which has no history, and happier still is that musical comedyabout which one can find nothing to say.

-Agate,James

Il y aura toujours un chien perdu quelque part qui m'empe"  chera d'e"  tre heureux. There will always be a lost dog somewhere that will prevent me being happy.

-Anouilh,Jean

But if marriage be such a blessed state, how comes it, may you say, that there are so few happy marriages? Now in answer to this, is it not to be wondered that so few succeed, we should rather be surprized to find so manydo, considering how imprudently menengage, the motive they act by, and the very strange conduct they observe throughout.

-Astell, Mary

happy quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"happy." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/happy>

APA Style

happy. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/happy

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