happy
delighted, pleased, or glad, as over a particular thing: I'm so happy to see you!
characterized by or indicative of pleasure, contentment, or joy: a happy mood;a happy frame of mind.
willing to be helpful, as with assistance, a contribution, or participation: We’ll be happy to bring a couple of salads to the party.
favored by fortune; fortunate or lucky: Our home country is a happy, fruitful land.
(used as part of an expression of good wishes on a special occasion): Happy Valentine’s Day to my husband.Happy Birthday, Grandpa!
apt or felicitous, as actions, utterances, or ideas: Their collaboration was a happy accident.
obsessed by or quick to use the item indicated (usually used in combination): He was a trigger-happy gangster.Everybody is gadget-happy these days.
Idioms about happy
happy as a clam. See entry at happy as a clam.
Origin of happy
1Other words for happy
Opposites for happy
Other words from happy
- o·ver·hap·py, adjective
- qua·si-hap·py, adjective
Words Nearby happy
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use happy in a sentence
I’m happy I’m not a freshman right now because I think that my dorm experience is something I never would have wanted to give up.
In fact, I was the kid who, if I got called up in front of the class, was not happy to publicly speak.
Tom Colicchio Hopes (and Fears) COVID-19 Will Change the Restaurant Industry | Pallabi Munsi | September 16, 2020 | OzyIt’s a way to keep the ice-cream makers happy while saving the rainforest, and it can be scaled up now.
The Environmental Headache in Your Shampoo - Issue 90: Something Green | Anastasia Bendebury & Michael Shilo DeLay | September 16, 2020 | NautilusZoom happy hours and small dinner parties are the pandemic’s new social scenes and cocktails should be part of this home experience.
Rodríguez, who now lives in Arizona, in a message she sent to the Blade said she was very happy when Moreno called her and told her she had won her case.
Lesbian woman from Cuba granted asylum in U.S. | Yariel Valdés González | September 15, 2020 | Washington Blade
So, as far as Mexican officials like Peña Nieto are concerned, the goal is to keep their countrymen here — and keep them happy.
Why Mexicans Are Enraged by Obama’s Big Tuesday Meeting | Ruben Navarrette Jr. | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTHow do you celebrate when happy occasions are colored by loss and absence?
Everyone at This Dinner Party Has Lost Someone | Samantha Levine | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTHe seemed by all appearances perfectly happy to let the Republicans control the state senate.
Mario Cuomo: An OK Governor, but a Far Better Person | Michael Tomasky | January 2, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTThe church was not happy with his views, and there was talk of excommunication.
Mario Cuomo, a Frustrating Hero to Democrats, Is Dead at 82 | Eleanor Clift | January 2, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST“We wish each and every one of you a happy and safe new year,” Giorgio said at the very end.
And that was that if he and his wife were to ever live together again and be happy, the family were to be kept out of it.
The Homesteader | Oscar MicheauxCousin George's position is such a happy one, that conversation is to him a thing superfluous.
Physiology of The Opera | John H. Swaby (AKA "Scrici")Liszt gazed at "his Hans," as he calls him, with the fondest pride, and seemed perfectly happy over his arrival.
Music-Study in Germany | Amy FayM'Bongo and his whole court are now clothed, I am happy to say, at least to a certain extent.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3) | Charles James WillsHe was aware that his act by this time, had helped nobody, had made no one happy or satisfied—not even himself.
The Homesteader | Oscar Micheaux
British Dictionary definitions for happy (1 of 2)
/ (ˈhæpɪ) /
feeling, showing, or expressing joy; pleased
willing: I'd be happy to show you around
causing joy or gladness
fortunate; lucky: the happy position of not having to work
aptly expressed; appropriate: a happy turn of phrase
(postpositive) informal slightly intoxicated
(in combination): happy birthday; happy Christmas
Origin of happy
1- See also trigger-happy
Derived forms of happy
- happily, adverb
- happiness, noun
British Dictionary definitions for -happy (2 of 2)
denoting excessive enthusiasm for or devotion to: gun-happy
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with happy
In addition to the idioms beginning with happy
- happy as the day is long
- happy camper
- happy hour
- happy hunting ground
- happy medium
also see:
- many happy returns
- trigger happy
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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