happy

adjective hap·py \ ˈha-pē \

|Updated on: 16 Jul 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: happy in a Sentence

Definition of happy

happier; happiest

1 : favored by luck or fortune : fortunate

a happy coincidence

2 : notably fitting, effective, or well adapted : felicitous

a happy choice

3 a : enjoying or characterized by well-being and contentment

is the happiest person I know

a happy childhood

b : expressing, reflecting, or suggestive of happiness

a happy ending

c : glad, pleased

I'm happy to meet you

d : having or marked by an atmosphere of good fellowship : friendly

a happy office

4 a : characterized by a dazed irresponsible state

a punch-happy boxer

b : impulsively or obsessively quick to use or do something

trigger-happy

c : enthusiastic about something to the point of obsession : obsessed

education-conscious and statistic-happy
—Helen Rowen

See happy defined for English-language learners

See happy defined for kids

Examples of happy in a Sentence

She was a very happy child.
You don't look happy. What's the problem?
We're all one big, happy family here.
I'd do anything to make her happy.
I could hear the children's happy laughter in the other room.
She had a very happy childhood.
They've had a very happy marriage.
I was glad the movie had a happy ending.
We are so happy that you were able to come to the party.
They are not at all happy about the rise in taxes.

Recent Examples of happy from the Web

Continued success—and perhaps survival—now means trying to keep investors, users, and Congress happy.

— alex shephard, The New Republic, "Is Twitter Good Now?," 13 July 2018
The Rams were just happy to be playing for the regional title after Wednesday’s comeback win over Mundelein.

— bob narang, Lake County News-Sun, "Comeback kids: Marcus Maristela and Kevin O’Brien help Grayslake Central reach regional championship game," 13 July 2018
Research suggests that employees are happier in co-working environments like those run by WeWork.

— The Economist, "Big corporates’ quest to be hip is helping WeWork," 12 July 2018
And the board was happy to claim someone whose heritage reflects that of a growing segment of CMS students.

— ann doss helms, charlotteobserver, "Quiet agitator at CMS prepares to rattle some cages in his second year," 12 July 2018
Despite Apple’s best efforts, nothing it’s made recently has been a worthy heir to that throne, and PC makers have been all too happy to try to fill that gap.

— dieter bohn, The Verge, "Apple’s new MacBook Pros have the latest Intel processors and quieter keyboards," 12 July 2018
Doing this gives me a warm feeling in my heart seeing people so happy.

— diane moca, Naperville Sun, "Naperville teen brings the birthday party — complete with cake and gifts — to those who might not otherwise celebrate," 10 July 2018
Among other things, says Botkin, this is critical to keeping research participants happy—and, by extension, helping a range of studies recruit enough people to succeed.

— jennifer couzin-frankel, Science | AAAS, "Report advocates broader return of research results," 10 July 2018
Beijing may be happy to see the yuan slide, in part to offset any impact on its exports as trade tensions rise.

— shen hong, WSJ, "This Year’s Selloff in Chinese Markets Isn’t Like 2015. It Looks Worse.," 6 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'happy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of happy

Middle English, from hap

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

happy Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of happy

lucky, fortunate, happy, providential mean meeting with unforeseen success. lucky stresses the agency of chance in bringing about a favorable result.

- won because of a lucky bounce

fortunate suggests being rewarded beyond one's deserts.

- fortunate in my investments

happy combines the implications of lucky and fortunate with stress on being blessed.

- a series of happy accidents

providential more definitely implies the help or intervention of a higher power.

- a providential change in the weather

fit, suitable, meet, proper, appropriate, fitting, apt, happy, felicitous mean right with respect to some end, need, use, or circumstance. fit stresses adaptability and sometimes special readiness for use or action.