glad
In Norwegian, happy can be translated as glad or lykkelig.
Meaning: contented, joyous (adj)
Ways to say it
| Norwegian |
|---|
| glad |
| lykkelig |
The term describes a state of being contented or joyous.
Which one should you use?
glad is the common word used for everyday happiness, being pleased or feeling glad about a specific thing. In contrast, lykkelig describes a much deeper, more profound state of happiness or bliss.
How does it change in a sentence?
When using glad as an adjective to describe plural nouns in the definite form, it becomes glade. Similarly, when using lykkelig to describe plural nouns in the definite form, it becomes lykkelige.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often try to use glad for all contexts of the English word 'happy'. However, in Norwegian, glad is often more about being pleased or cheerful, whereas lykkelig should be reserved for life-changing joy.
Did you know?
- While 'glad' is used for everyday cheerfulness, the Norwegian word glad i followed by a person actually means 'to love' or 'to be fond of', such as in 'Jeg er glad i deg'.
- Norwegian has two official written standards, Bokmål and Nynorsk, and while Bokmål uses lykkelig, Nynorsk uses lukkeleg.
- The Norwegian word lykkelig shares an ancestral root with the Yiddish word gliklekh, which also describes a state of happiness.
Examples in context
- Du gjør meg gladYou make me happy.This sentence shows how to express that someone makes you happy using glad.Tatoeba #2879728 by eirik174, translation #63215 by CK
- Gjør det deg glad?Does that make you happy?This is a question asking if something makes a person happy using glad.Tatoeba #2935401 by eirik174, translation #2044564 by CK
- Tom er ganske glad.Tom is quite happy.This sentence describes a person being quite happy using glad.Tatoeba #5154309 by sotolf, translation #5148115 by CK
- 76 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nora and Jakob are talking about a recent promotion.
- NoraJeg er så glad for den nye jobben!I am so happy about the new job!
- JakobDet skjønner jeg, Nora.I understand that, Nora.
- NoraEr du glad på mine vegne?Are you happy on my behalf?
- JakobJa, jeg er kjempeglad for deg!Yes, I am very happy for you!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “happy” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries glad, lykkelig, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
