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How to be happy in English
Sorry, but lessons on The Blue Tree work only on a computer or a tablet.
Bardzo mi przykro, ale lekcje na platformie The Blue Tree działają jedynie na komputerze lub tablecie.
Do zobaczenia na większym ekranie 🙂
Zespół The Blue Tree
How to be happy in English
THE BLUE TREE
Learn Words
CEFR B2
Upper
Intermediate
warm up
Answer the questions below. Listen to sample answers. Read the transcript.
| Share with the class a happy memory. What is it about? Why is it special for you? |
TRANSCRIPT
A happy memory for me is when I went to the beach with my family last summer. We spent the whole day swimming, playing volleyball, and having a barbecue. It was special because we don’t often have time to be together like that, and the weather was perfect. I felt really relaxed and full of joy.
| How do you define happiness? What does being happy mean to you? |
TRANSCRIPT
For me, happiness is about inner balance. I’ve learned from the Stoics that it doesn’t depend on external things like money or success. It’s more about how we respond to what happens in life. If I can stay calm and accept things I can’t control, I feel at peace. That’s what being happy means to me — it’s a state of mind, not something you get from outside.
| Is being happy the same as being successful? |
TRANSCRIPT
No, I don’t think being happy is the same as being successful. Success often depends on achievements, money, or status, but happiness is something deeper. You can have everything and still not feel happy. For me, happiness comes from feeling content and at peace with myself, while success is more about reaching goals. They’re both important, but they don’t always go together.
STUDY SECTION
Happy moment
Alita and Pete are chatting about a happy moment in their lives. Listen to and read their dialogue. Role play it, if possible.
Alita: Hey Pete, do you remember that day when we went to the beach and the sun was shining so bright?
Pete: Yeah, that was a great day! I was feeling so cheerful and in a good mood.
Alita: You were definitely cheery! I remember you couldn’t stop grinning from ear to ear.
Pete: Haha, I know! I was so thrilled to be there. It really made my day.
Alita: I was feeling the same way. The whole atmosphere just raised our spirits.
Pete: I was over the moon when we found that spot under the palm trees. It was perfect.
Alita: Yeah, and when we went for a swim in the ocean, I felt so delighted.
Pete: I remember you couldn’t stop talking about it afterwards. You were happy as can be.
Alita: It was just one of those moments that you want to gloat about. I’m so glad we got to experience it together.
HAPPY EXPRESSIONS
Study the words and expressions to talk about being happy. Open each toggle, read the words and examples. Listen to the audio recordings.
FEELING HAPPY
- Content: She was content with her life and didn’t feel like she needed anything else.
- Blissful: They spent a blissful day at the beach, soaking up the sun and playing in the waves.
- Radiant: Her smile was radiant and infectious, lighting up the entire room.
- Joyful: The children were joyful and giggling as they played together in the park.
- Cheerful: The cheerful music made everyone feel happy and energized.
- Jovial: He had a jovial personality and was always making people laugh.
- Euphoric: She felt euphoric after completing her first marathon, a feeling of immense happiness and accomplishment.
- Merry: The holiday season always made her feel merry and excited for the festivities.
- Pleased: He was pleased with the results of his hard work and dedication to his job.
- Satisfied: She felt satisfied with her meal, knowing that she had eaten a healthy and delicious dinner.
very happy
- Overjoyed: She was overjoyed when she found out she got the job.
- Thrilled: He was thrilled to hear that his book had been published.
- Delighted: The children were delighted to see the circus come to town.
- Grinning from ear to ear: She was grinning from ear to ear when she saw her surprise birthday party.
- On cloud nine: He was on cloud nine after proposing to his girlfriend and she said yes.
- Jumping for joy: The children were jumping for joy when they found out they were going to Disney World.
- Walking on air: She was walking on air after receiving a promotion at work.
- Bursting with happiness: He was bursting with happiness when he saw his newborn baby for the first time.
- Feeling on top of the world: She was feeling on top of the world after completing her first marathon.
- In seventh heaven: She was in seventh heaven after receiving tickets to her favorite band’s concert.
MAKE SOMEONE FEEL HAPPY
- make somebody happy: He would do anything to make her happy.
- cheer up: I tried to cheer him up by telling a joke.
- make somebody’s day: Sherry’s phone call really made my day.
- put somebody in a good mood: Shopping for new shoes usually puts her in a good mood.
- raise somebody’s spirits: The chance to get out of the house for a few hours had clearly raised her spirits.
HAPPY + NOUN
- Happy hour: Let’s meet at the bar for happy hour and enjoy some discounted drinks.
- Happy ending: The movie had a happy ending, with the main character finding true love.
- Happy couple: The happy couple announced their engagement and set a date for their wedding.
- Happy medium: It’s important to find a happy medium between work and leisure time.
- Happy accident: The discovery of penicillin was a happy accident that revolutionized medicine.
- Happy-go-lucky: He had a happy-go-lucky personality and always saw the bright side of things.
- Happy camper: The children were happy campers, enjoying all the activities and games at summer camp.
- Happy place: The beach was her happy place, where she could relax and unwind.
- Happy dance: She did a happy dance when she found out she had been accepted into her dream school.
- Happy tune: The cheerful melody of the happy tune made everyone want to dance and sing along.
ADVERB + HAPPY
- Quite happy: He was quite happy with the results of his exam, but knew he could do better.
- Extremely happy: The couple was extremely happy on their wedding day, surrounded by family and friends.
- Incredibly happy: She was incredibly happy to see her sister after months of being apart.
- Somewhat happy: She was somewhat happy with her new haircut, but thought it could have been a bit shorter.
- Relatively happy: He was relatively happy with his progress in learning a new language.
- Moderately happy: The movie reviews were moderately happy, with some critics giving it high praise and others finding faults.
- Reasonably happy: She was reasonably happy with her salary, but hoped to negotiate a raise in the future.
- Mildly happy: He was mildly happy with the gift, but was hoping for something a bit more exciting.
PRACTICE
MULTIDECKER FLASHCARDS
Play this flashcard game. Decide which category each word or expression should go to.
SAMPLE SENTENCES
Let’s revise these words and expressions for being happy once again.
Complete the sentences below with the same words which were used in the examples (in toggles).
Happy stories
Complete three stories of Kat, Sven, and Alita. Each story has language of talking about feeling happy.
OVER TO YOU
Create your own story about a happy moment. Use the language from this lesson. Submit your story in the comments section.
LESSON GLOSSARY
How to be happy in English
| wdt_ID | ITEM | MEANING |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | cheerful | radosny, pogodny, wesoły |
| 2 | be in a good mood | być w dobrym nastroju |
| 3 | content | zadowolony, rad |
| 4 | cheery | radosny, wesoły |
| 5 | pleased | zadowolony, usatysfakcjonowany |
| 6 | glad | zadowolony (szczęśliwy z jakiegoś powodu) |
| 7 | be tickled | szaleć z radości |
| 8 | gloat | napawać się, chełpić się, triumfować |
| 9 | delighted | zachwycony, uszczęśliwiony |
| 10 | thrilled | bardzo szczęśliwy |
| ITEM | MEANING |
Rich and Poor
Sorry, but lessons on The Blue Tree work only on a computer or a tablet.
Bardzo mi przykro, ale lekcje na platformie The Blue Tree działają jedynie na komputerze lub tablecie.
Do zobaczenia na większym ekranie 🙂
Zespół The Blue Tree
back to HOME > Learning English > Learn more words >
Rich and Poor
THE BLUE TREE
Learn Words
CEFR B1
Intermediate
warm up
Answer the question below.
- What’s your attitude to money?
- Are you good with money? Can you manage your money well?
- How would your life change if you were filthy rich?
STUDY SECTION
Study the words and expressions for talking about wealth and poverty.
WORDS MEANING RICH
- wealthy
She comes from a wealthy family, who own houses in London and Paris. - prosperous
After the war, Germany became one of Europe’s most prosperous countries. - well-to-do
He wants to find a husband from a well-to-do background for his daughter. - comfortably off
When the children were small we never had much money, but now we seem to be comfortably off. - affluent
As people become more affluent, so their standard and style of living improves.
EXTREMELY RICH
- be loaded
Did you know Peter has three houses? He must be loaded. - be rolling in it
Don’t worry about him. He’s rolling in it. Clearly, he can afford to pay for it. - stinking rich
This gorgeous woman walked in, beautifully dressed and obviously stinking rich. - filthy rich
Gregory is filthy rich but he never gives a penny to charity. - be worth a fortune
The Chief Executive started her career as a secretary, and now she’s worth millions. - have money to burn
Every time I see her she’s wearing something new. She must have money to burn.
PERSON WHO IS RICH
- fat cat
A very rich and powerful person, usually in business or politics
Why should those fat cats get rich at our expense?
- new money
People who have recently become rich
He’s not quite sure who the Joyces are, because they are new money.
- tycoon
A rich and powerful person who is involved in business or industry
Tapie, business tycoon and football club owner, was appointed Minister for Cities.
- be born with a silver spoon in the mouth
To be rich because you come from a rich family
You can hardly know what it means to be poor as you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth. - to live in the lap of luxury
To live in very comfortable and expensive conditions
After winning the reward for the best salesperson, we spent two weeks in the hotel living in the lap of luxury.
TO BECOME RICH
- make good
He’s a local boy made good. - marry into money
Sue married into money when she found the Sheik. - go from rags to riches
America is full of stories of people who went from rags to riches. - be set up for life
After winning the lottery, Rob is set up for life. Provided, he manages his money well. - to strike it rich
Jack has struck it rich when he launched the social media site.
OTHER MEANINGS OF RICH
- large amount
Citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C. - full of interest
The area has a very rich history. - food that has a lot of taste
The sauce was very rich. - colours that are bright and vivid
A rich dark brown colour.
HAVING LITTLE MONEY
- poor
She was born in a poor district of Chicago in 1925. - badly off
She was quite badly off for a while after her husband died. - impoverished
His family became so impoverished they were forced to sell the farm. - destitute
The rest of her family all died in a smallpox epidemic, leaving her destitute.
NOT HAVE MONEY AT THE MOMENT
- hard up
I’m a little hard up just now – can I pay you back next week? - broke
We’re always broke at the end of the month. - skint
I’m really skint – you couldn’t lend me a few quid could you? - be down-on-your-luck
In the film, Williams plays a down-on-his-luck salesman whose wife has left him.
FEWER LIFE OPPORTUNITIES
- disadvantaged
Quinn argued that an increase in the minimum wage would help the most disadvantaged Americans. - deprived
Children growing up in deprived areas are far more likely to turn to crime and drug abuse.
PRACTICE
Complete the flashcard exercise below. Decide if the word on the card describes somebody who is rich or poor. Flip the card to see an example sentence.
TEST
Let’s see how well you remember these words and expressions for rich and poor. Complete these sentences with the words from the example you read and listened to.
Score more than 80% and get a beautiful certificate!
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DISCUSSION
Answer the question below. Try using vocabulary from the lesson.
- Are there more pros or cons in being prosperous?
- Should well-off people pay more taxes?
- If you had money to burn, what would you spend it on?
- Does money change people? What happens to people when they become rich in a relatively short time?
- Is it possible to be happy on little money?
- Have you ever heard anybody who was rich but lost their fortune? What happened?
LESSON GLOSSARY
Rich or Poor
COMMENTS
Build some sentences to illustrate the meanings of words which were new from this lesson.
COMMENTS