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Synonyms

joy

1 American  
[joi] / dʒɔɪ /

noun

  1. the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation.

    She felt the joy of seeing her son's success.
    Synonyms:
    rapture
    Antonyms:
    grief, sorrow, unhappiness, misery

  2. a source or cause of keen pleasure or delight; something or someone greatly valued or appreciated.

    Her prose style is a pure joy.

  3. the expression or display of glad feeling; festive gaiety.

  4. a state of happiness or felicity.

    Synonyms:
    bliss

verb (used without object)

  1. to feel joy; be glad; rejoice.

verb (used with object)

  1. Obsolete. to gladden.

Joy 2 American  
[joi] / dʒɔɪ /
Or Joye

noun

  1. a female given name.

joy British  
/ dʒɔɪ /

noun

  1. a deep feeling or condition of happiness or contentment

  2. something causing such a feeling; a source of happiness

  3. an outward show of pleasure or delight; rejoicing

  4. informal success; satisfaction

    I went to the bank for a loan, but got no joy
"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

verb

  1. (intr) to feel joy

  2. obsolete (tr) to make joyful; gladden

"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
joy Idioms  

  1. see burst with (joy); pride and joy.

Related Words

See pleasure.

Other Word Forms

  • unjoyed adjective

Etymology

Origin of joy

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English joy(e), from Old French joie, joye, from Late Latin gaudia, neuter plural (taken as feminine singular) of Latin gaudium “joy,” equivalent to gaud- (base of gaudēre “to be glad”) + -ium -ium

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.

Hansen took questions from media while wedged in horizontally and described the joy of floating: "It just makes me feel like a little kid."

From Barron's • Apr. 4, 2026

It is the willingness to show both joy and discomfort that underpins their documentary - Laing describes himself as "more anxious", while Habboo admits she is "worse on no sleep".

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

For others, stop-start has deadened the joy of driving.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

Every facet of life - joy, despair and everything in between – co-existed under the strobe lights.

From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026

And so the anger and sadness continue to grow inside me like weeds, leaving no room for my heart to feel joy.

From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar

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.