Basic Details
Word: Happily
Part of Speech: Adverb
Meaning: In a happy, cheerful way; also used to mean luckily, as in 'Happily, nobody was hurt.'
Synonyms: cheerfully, gladly, joyfully, luckily
Antonyms: sadly, unhappily, gloomily
How to Spell Happily
Syllables: hap - pi - ly
Tricky part: Happy ends in y, but the y changes to i before ly. Students who keep the y write happyly.
Watch out for: happyly, hapily, happilly
Memory tip: Happy hands its y over to i when ly arrives, the same swap as in lucky and luckily: happy, happi, happily.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The puppy wagged its tail happily when Meera came home from school.
Example 2: Happily, the rain stopped just before the final over.
Example 3: The two friends chatted happily on the long bus ride to Shimla.
Fun Fact
Many English fairy tales close with the same line: and they all lived happily ever after.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word happily as used in the sentence:
The twins happily agreed to share the last slice of birthday cake with their cousin.
a) gladly
b) cheerfully
c) willingly
d) grudgingly
Show answer
d) grudgingly. Cheerfully, gladly and willingly all mean nearly the same as happily; grudgingly means unwillingly.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
happilly
a) i
b) a
c) l
d) p
Show answer
c) l. The ending ly has a single l, just like in sadly or kindly.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the letters in the sentence to form a meaningful word:
The old couple lived lypahip in a small cottage near the tea gardens.
a) happily
b) hastily
c) haply
d) shapely
Show answer
a) happily. Count the letters: seven, with two p's and no s, which only happily fits.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In 'Happily, the lost passport was found', happily means ____.
a) slowly
b) luckily
c) quietly
d) angrily
Show answer
b) luckily
2. Which person is behaving happily?
a) a man shouting at the traffic
b) a child crying over a broken toy
c) a girl sulking in a corner
d) a boy humming as he waters the plants
Show answer
d) a boy humming as he waters the plants
