happiness
Americannoun
-
the quality or state of being happy.
- Synonyms:
- satisfaction, enjoyment, delight, contentedness, bliss, exhilaration, joy, pleasure
- Antonyms:
- misery
-
good fortune; pleasure; contentment; joy.
- Synonyms:
- delight, contentedness, bliss, exhilaration, joy, pleasure, satisfaction, enjoyment
Related Words
Happiness, bliss, contentment, felicity imply an active or passive state of pleasure or pleasurable satisfaction. Happiness results from the possession or attainment of what one considers good: the happiness of visiting one's family. Bliss is unalloyed happiness or supreme delight: the bliss of perfect companionship. Contentment is a peaceful kind of happiness in which one rests without desires, even though every wish may not have been gratified: contentment in one's surroundings. Felicity is a formal word for happiness of an especially fortunate or intense kind: to wish a young couple felicity in life.
Other Word Forms
- overhappiness noun
Etymology
Origin of happiness
Compare meaning
How does happiness compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
"I became a mum in 2023, but my arms were empty. This year, I finally get to wrap gifts for the child who came home. It's a happiness tinged with grief"
From BBC
The posada was a moment of hope and happiness amid turmoil, and a reminder that not all law enforcement officers see immigration status as a measure of worth.
From Los Angeles Times
“It makes a man feel prudent like; and then goodbye to happiness. You give me what I ask you, Governor: not a penny more, and not a penny less.”
Because whatever amount it might have been, Kempe decided it wasn’t worth more than his happiness.
From Los Angeles Times
The series, which has broken Apple TV audience records previously held by “Severance,” raises philosophical questions about the nature of happiness, altruism and personal freedom.
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.
