😊 Feeling joy 🤗 Willing or eager 🎉 Good outcome 📝 Well-chosen words

happy

21 6.7

Said or written in words that fit well

adjective
/ˈhæpi/

: acertado

I mean, I wasn't ecstatic, just happy because I could see where this team was going.

Examples

The teacher praised the students for their happy expressions during the presentation.
You don't know how happy you made me.

Rush Hour (1998)
I am so happy with the way this stuff looks.
You should do what makes you happy.

American Pie (1999)
And I'm so happy to see you too.
But always I shall treasure the memories of our happy childhood in my heart and in my mind.

The History of Love (2016)
Her happy smile lit up the room as she opened the thoughtful gift.
The children were happy about their successful performance in the school play.

Synonyms

well-chosen

vshappy

4 4.1

Carefully picked to suit a situation or purpose

is a single word rather than a hyphenated phrase

Antonyms

ineffective

90 3.4

Not working well enough to give the wanted result

inapt

Formal

1 7.5

Not suitable and awkward when speaking or acting

Idioms

one big happy family

Informal

14 3.4

A group of people who are close and friendly like a loving home

many happy returns

2 4.9

A wish that someone has many more happy days, often on their birthday

happy as a lark

Informal

1 5.5

Feeling very pleased and excited

happy as a pig in mud

Informal

1 8.2

Feeling very happy and content

as happy as a jaybird

Informal

7.5

Feeling very pleased and full of joy

Compounds

happy ending

108 1.7

A good finish to a story where things turn out well

happy hour

45 2.5

A period when a bar or restaurant sells drinks and sometimes food at lower prices

trigger-happy

Offensive

16 8.2

Quick to use force without thinking

happy place

Informal

15 3.9

A place or memory that makes you feel calm and happy

happy-go-lucky

12 6.1

A person who is cheerful and does not worry about future problems

happy medium

6 3.9

A middle choice that pleases both sides

happy event

1 1.2

The birth of a baby that people celebrate

happy return

Archaic

1 5.1

A wish that someone will enjoy many happy birthdays

happy chappy

Archaic

1 8.2

A cheerful, friendly man who often smiles

happy snap

1 8.2

A quick picture taken to show a happy moment

gate-happy

Informal

9.6

Feeling very excited while waiting to travel, especially at an airport

happy chance

3.9

A lucky unexpected event that brings something good

happy dispatch

Archaic

7.6

A message that gives good news to people

happy-clappy

Slur

9.8

Being too cheerful and loud, often in church or group meetings

happy murr

Archaic

9.9

A soft sound a cat makes when it feels pleased

How Apt

happy

21 6.7

adequate

234 2.7

awkward

61 3.3

inapt

Formal

1 7.5

ill-chosen

1 6.3

Surface Forms

happy positive

happier comparative

happiest superlative

Morphology

happy = hap (semi-transparent) = hap + y

The sense 'aptly or effectively expressed' is an extended or archaic use related to 'fortunate/apt' and is not transparently derivable for most learners.

Etymology

Happy comes from the old word hap, meaning 'luck' or 'chance', and long ago it could mean 'well-suited' by chance. A helpful way to remember a 'happy' phrase is that it fits well or is 'apt', so 'happy' can mean nicely chosen or effective words.