喜笑颜开 (xǐ xiào yán kāi) — to be all smiles; to beam with joy

Definition

A vivid four-character idiom for being so happy your face lights up with a big smile. Stronger and more literary than everyday 高兴 or 开心 — emphasizes visible joy on the face.

idiom
to be all smilesto beam with joy

Examples

  • ，喜笑颜开。
    Tīng dào zhè ge hǎo xiāo xi, tā gāo xìng dé xǐ xiào yán kāi.
    Hearing this good news, she was all smiles with joy.
  • 喜笑颜开。
    Hái zi men shōu dào lǐ wù shí gè gè xǐ xiào yán kāi.
    Every child was beaming with joy when they received the gifts.
  • ，喜笑颜开，。
    Hūn lǐ shàng, xīn láng xīn niáng xǐ xiào yán kāi, xìng fú jí le.
    At the wedding, the bride and groom were all smiles, extremely happy.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

喜 combines 壴, a drum, with 口, a mouth.

Open 喜 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
犬犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
艸
艸cǎo笑xiào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

An early 笑 used the grass 艸 for the sound and the dog 犬 for the meaning; later it was written with 竹 and 夭.

Open 笑 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 顏; 颜 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
彥
彥yàn顏⁰yán
Same sound today

The traditional form 顏, not the simplified 颜, pairs 彥 as a sound part with 頁, a head, for face or countenance.

Open 颜 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 開; 开 is its simplified writing.

  • 門門méndoor
  • 一一yīlatch and/or wooden pole that shuts a door
  • 廾廾gǒnga pair of hands

The traditional form 開 shows 廾, a pair of hands, and 一, a latch or pole, inside 門, a door: hands opening a latched door. The simplified 开 is a shorthand form, so its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 开 →

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