walking on air
1
3.7
- idiom
- Informal
:
estar en las nubes
- She felt like she was walking on air on her wedding day.
Examples
-
After winning the championship, the team was walking on air with joy.
-
We were all walking on air that night.
-
Max, you appear to be walking on air.
-
And my boy was walking on air.
-
When you find someone who wants to listen, it's like walking on air.
-
We're both walking on air.
-
I was walking on air.
-
Oh, darling, I'm walking on air.
-
It's like you're walking on air.
-
He was walking on air.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Feeling very happy and eager about something
171
2.3
Feeling very excited and happy
70
1.0
Feeling or showing great happiness
69
4.5
Feeling very happy and excited
11
4.0
Feeling very happy and excited because of good news or success
9
5.9
Feeling very happy and excited
2
4.4
Feeling very happy and full of energy
2
4.1
Feeling very happy and excited
2
7.5
Feeling very happy and excited for no clear reason
1
8.1
To feel very happy and excited
1
6.7
Feeling very happy and peaceful
Smiling very widely and looking clearly happy
Feeling happy and proud because something made you feel better
Very excited and happy in an obvious way
Antonyms
How Happy
Surface Forms
Morphology
walking + on + air
The expression uses literal words but the sense is metaphorical: the image of 'walking' combined with 'air' evokes lightness and buoyancy to signal extreme happiness rather than a literal action. A B1 learner who knows the constituents could plausibly infer a positive, elated meaning from this image, but the exact idiomatic sense is not fully predictable without exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Walking on air paints a picture of someone so happy they feel light and as if they are walking on air above the ground. That's why it means 'very happy'.