cheery
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cheery
Explanation
Something that's cheery makes you feel happy. A cheery summer day is sunny and bright. It's always fun to spend time with a cheery friend, one who is positive and happy, or to participate in some cheery activity, like watching a funny movie or having a picnic. Cheery things do exactly what they sound like — they cheer you up. You can also use cheerful to mean the same thing, and both words are rooted in cheer, from the Anglo-French chere, "the face," with its Greek root kara, "head."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Earth, Wind & Fire’s cheery, uplifting hits were at odds with the decadeslong internal strain that eventually tore the band apart.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
She stops to talk, or shouts a cheery "Hi, you alright?" to nearly everybody passing on foot or by car.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
Long after Massie left the stage, the mood around the hotel where his election night party was held stayed cheery.
From Slate ● May 20, 2026
Wall Street didn’t agree with that cheery assessment.
From Barron's ● Apr. 17, 2026
He was very courteous and very cheery in his manner, and seeing that I had been sleeping, he said:—
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
The band later had hits with much cheerier material, including "Friday I'm in Love".
From Barron's ● Dec. 26, 2025
Things were no cheerier when officials from the Department of Justice spoke to MLAs.
From BBC ● Mar. 2, 2024
Some Americans do have a cheerier outlook now.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 24, 2024
The conversations at the meet and grieve downtown contrast starkly with the cheerier, hopeful talk of the picket lines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2023
It will be cheerier than stopping at home.
From Non-combatants and Others by Dame Rose Macaulay
Their festive rush through the streets will make you fall in love with New York's cheeriest seasonal spots while longing for the moment when strangers Dash and Lily finally collide.
From Salon ● Dec. 20, 2024
Defence stocks rose, rarely the cheeriest sign from a human perspective.
From Reuters ● Sep. 21, 2022
The cheeriest part of the school is the wellness center, with social workers, therapists, bean bag chairs and soothing paint colors.
From New York Times ● Dec. 24, 2021
Not the cheeriest sentiment, perhaps, but — just as with the fleeting beauty of the cherry blossoms — periodical cicadas do lend themselves to verse.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 8, 2021
I went up to the manager and said in my cheeriest voice, “Good afternoon. I am from the People’s Center summer camp, and I buy dinner groceries at this store.”
From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
