Learn TOP happy words and expressions | How to say HAPPY in English

Hi there, this is Harry and welcome back to  advanced English lessons with Harry, where I  

try to help you to get a better understanding of  the English language. Today we're looking at the  

word happy. So we're going to look at English  vocabulary, ada... advanced English vocabulary,  

using the word happy. I'll give you some  alternative words, as I always do. And I'll  

go back through them and give you examples,  working examples as to how you can use them.

So whilst we're talking about happy,  I'm really happy to introduce you to  

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Okay, let's get back to today's lesson. As he  said, this is an advanced vocabulary lesson  

all about happy so we're looking at alternative  words to happy. So I'm going to give you the list,  

there are 10 in total. I've even got a  little nursery rhyme for you. So we'll  

go through those and then I'll go back and give  you worked examples as to how you can use them.

Okay, let's start. So chuffed. Chuffed. Cheerful.  Pleased. Elated. Elated. Glad. Delighted.  

Joyous, very formal, joyous. Over the moon.  Thrilled to bits. Tickled pink, tickled pink.

Okay, let's go through them. One by one.

Chuffed. It's a little bit informal.

He's absolutely chuffed with the present you gave  him. He really wanted that, he'd been talking  

about it for ever. Yeah, so he's really chuffed.  Very, very happy. Thanks so much. Chuffed.

Cheerful. Well, we're cheerful  when we get good news.

Ah, the party, everybody was cheerful.  Everybody was having a couple of drinks.  

Just the a party before Christmas is just what  you need just to get you ready for the festive  

season. So everybody was cheerful. Laughing,  joking, in a good mood. Cheerful, happy.

Pleased. And this is a little bit more  formal and lacks a little bit of emotion,  

pleased. Oh, I'm very pleased to meet you.

Oh, I'm really pleased, you got the job. We were  worried that you would be without a job for a few  

months after you finish your course. But we're  really pleased that you managed to get a job.

Oh, we're so pleased, we got the house  sorted in time because we really wanted  

to get all the decoration done before you  arrived home. So pleased, quite formal.

Elated. So it's formal, but  it's also a little bit higher  

in terms of this cheerfulness. Yeah. So elated.

Elated at the news that you're going  to have a grandchild. Elated at the  

news that your family are coming home  for Christmas. So really, really happy.

So be careful with the  pronunciation. Elated, elated.

Okay, so the next word we have is glad. Now, it's  a little bit short. It's only got four letters,  

of course, and it's a little bit  non-committal in terms of glad,  

it's not showing real happiness or high emotion in  it. But it's usually used by people who just say,  

Well, I'm happy. So I'm glad to hear from you.  So they might not be over the moon or so excited.

I'm glad you got the job. I'm  glad you got that sorted. Oh,  

I had a bit of problem with the car, and I  took it to the garage and they fixed it. Oh,  

I'm glad to hear that so you, you won't  have any more problems. So it's a way of  

just acknowledging that you're happy but not  ecstatic about something that has happened.

We can add some emphasis by adding words  like very we can say, I'm very glad,  

very glad to meet you. I'm very  glad to make your acquaintance.

I'm very glad you enjoyed your stay  in our hotel. So it's a good word,  

but it's not ecstatic. Okay, so glad.

And the next one I have is delighted. Now,  this shows a little bit more emotion. Oh,  

I'm delighted and delighted to hear your  news. You're getting married at last. That's  

really really good news. Wait till I tell your  father, he'll be over the moon. So delighted.

He was delighted to get promoted, he was  delighted with the news. He was delighted  

that he was able to share his good news with  all of his friends. So it really means a high  

state of happiness. So that would be really  really happy and it's a little formal okay,  

because we're not saying ecstatic,  we're not saying over the moon,  

but it's a little bit more reserved, but still  means a high level of happiness. So delighted.

Okay, so the next word is joyous. Let's just  practice the pronunciation joyous, joyous,  

two syllables, joyous joyous. Now, we use  this as quite formal, but we use it to talk  

about particular occasions, happy occasions,  like a wedding, or a christening. These are  

joyous occasions when friends and family get  together to celebrate special events in the  

family. Joyous. It was a joyous occasion  celebrated by the entire family. Joyous.

Okay, so the next three are all about expressions,  and idioms. Okay, we've got over the moon,  

thrilled to bits, and tickled pink,  and then we've got our nursery rhyme.

So we'll talk about over the moon  when somebody is over the moon,  

they are really, really happy, something really  important to make them happy has happened.

Peter was absolutely over the moon when he  got his exam results. You should have seen  

his face when he opened the envelope.  He saw the results and realised that  

he had his place in university  and much more important for him,  

he was able to go to the same university as  his friends. So yeah, he was over the moon.

So the particular nursery rhyme, and it goes  back many, many, many years even to my childhood.

Hey, Diddle Diddle, the cat and the  fiddle, the cow jumped over the moon,  

the little dog laughed to see such craft  and the dish ran away with the spoon. So  

hey, Diddle Diddle, the cat and the  fiddle. The cow jumped over the moon,  

the little dog laughed to see such craft  and the dish ran away with the spoon.

And it's strange, but the kids always get  a laugh to it. As I say it goes back many,  

many, many years. And you have that expression  over the moon, the cow jumped over the moon.

Okay, thrilled to bits. Now this is again,  very informal, thrilled to bits. What does  

it mean? Well, it just means you're very, very  happy. I'm thrilled to bits with the news. I'm  

thrilled to bits with what I heard, I'm getting  a promotion, I'm getting an increase in salary,  

we'll be able to move house. Thrilled  to bits. So it's very, very informal.

And people use it all the time to express express  themselves when they're really really happy. But  

in a very informal way thrilled to bits. It has  no real meaning because when you're thrilled,  

it's excited but two bits means you fall apart.  So thrilled to bits sounds a little bit strange,  

but it's one of those idioms, idiomatic  expressions that we use thrilled to bits.

And then finally tickled pink. If you tickle  somebody, they laugh and when they laugh,  

the face changes colour so from pink to red.  So when you're tickled pink, you can imagine  

somebody changing colour the skin changing  colour, so we're tickled pink when we're happy.

Okay, so you might present your mother with a  nice bunch of flowers. You might present her  

with some music that she's loves to listen to.  You might present her with some tickets to go  

to the favourite opera or performer and when she  gets them she's, Oh, I'm tickled pink. I really,  

really wished for many, many years to go  and see him. He's a wonderful performer.  

Will you come with me? So I'm tickled pink  meaning very excited and very, very happy.

Okay, so there are words and  expressions connected with happy.

Let me give them to you one more time. Chuffed.  Cheerful. Pleased. Elated. Glad. Delighted.  

Joyous. And then our expressions, over the moon,  thrilled to bits. And finally tickled pink.

And don't forget the nursery rhyme. Try it out  

with your kids if they're young enough.  Or your grandkids if you're old enough.

Hey Diddle Diddle, the cat and the  fiddle, the cow jumped over the moon,  

the little dog laughed to see such craft  and the dish ran away with the spoon.

Okay, so try and practice. All of those  words are lots of them there some that  

you might have heard for the first time so  try and see how you can use them. Practice  

the pronunciation a few of them that  are difficult, like joyous and elated.

As always, join me again soon. We're  very happy when you join us for all  

of the lessons and this is Harry saying  "goodbye" and see you in the next lesson.