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.