Well, I know I promised that this week I would write another post about the US, reprising my post about Independence Day last week. However, as some of you may know, I got really good news : I passed my public examinations to be a teacher at a Language School, and not only that, at last I can get to share the life with my girlfriend, who also happened to pass her public exams, in Madrid. This wonderful news led me to write this post about expressions and idioms related to happiness. English has different ways of expressing happiness, so let's examine some of them :
Adjectives and synonyms of 'happy'
Content / contented
Joyful / joyous
Gay / jolly / glad
Cheerful / cheery
Merry
Adverbs associated to happiness :
To be blissfully happy
To be deliriously happy
To be extremely happy
Extreme adjectives for 'happy' : These adjectives cannot be premodified by 'very' but they can be premodified by 'extremely' or 'totally'. These adjectives mean 'much more than happy.'
Delighted / pleased
Elated
Jubilant
Ecstatic (filled with ecstasy)
Euphoric
Blissful
Overjoyed
Rapturous
To be cock-a-hoop over something (informal expression)
To be on cloud nine
From : http://www.kaplaninternational.com/blog/on-cloud-nine-idiom |
From : http://www.symbols-n-emoticons.com/2014/03/emoticon-in-seventh-heaven.html |
From : https://www.illustrationsource.com/stock/image/2062/a-man-walking-over-the-moon/?&results_per_page=1&detail=TRUE&page=3 |
To be jumping for joy
To be on top of the world
I believe I can fly
From : https://plus.google.com/106970685184723047804/posts/W9ET5c6Tttu |
To burst with joy
To have a whale of a time = to have a really good time
From : http://www.123greetings.com/birthday/kids/have_a_whale_of_a_birthday.html |
From : http://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/mind-read/why_do_we_cry_when |
Similes are idioms that compare two things, objects, people or situation.
They are usually compared with 'as' or 'like' :
To be as happy as Larry : This one rhymes, similar to Spanish 'ser feliz como una perdiz.'
To be as happy as a clam (at high tide)
From : http://lobbylobster.com/shellfish-university/clams/ |
To be like a child with a new toy (when you receive a really good present)
To be as happy as a little boy on Christmas Day
From : http://www.speaktomeenglish.com/idioms/as-happy-as-a-sandboy-i26/ |
From : http://www.trafalgarssquare.com/products/happy-as-a-lark-1 |
To be happy as can be
To be as happy as a king. Can you imagine someone happier as a king ?
To be as pleased as punch : This one is outdated.
To be high as a kite : (probably because you took drugs)
Metaphors related to happiness
I would like to finish this post with one of the most precious metaphors about happiness used by the English : 'a bundle of joy.' Can you guess what this metaphor refers to ? It refers to a baby. What else could be a bundle of joy ? Another metaphor worth mentioning is a happy camper, referring to a happy person ! Last but not least, a metaphor associated to pink colour : to be tickled pink
From : http://www.kaplaninternational.com/blog/tickled-pink |
Did you enjoy and learn some expressions related to happiness ? I hope so. Thanks to passing my exam I am over the moon now, like some songs say 'I am so happy I could die'... Anyway, here you have the links to some other posts about idioms : animal idioms I, animal idioms II, violence idioms, food idioms, idioms related to cold, idioms related to heat and idioms related to luck. Besides, on your right, you can click on my post about the song : It's a Beautiful Day, quite an optimistic song, perfect to finish this post related to happiness. See you soon !
Enjoy !
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