How to Express Emotions in English: 66 Words and Expressions

Joy

I'm happy is the first thing that comes to mind when you need to say in English that you are happy. Let's look at how to correctly use the phrase to be happy and learn other words and expressions to describe happy emotions.

To say that you are happy to do something, use the phrase to be happy to do something or happy to be doing something:
I 'm very happy to see you. - I am very glad to see you! All the kids were extremely happy to be taking part in the contest. — All the children were very happy to take part in the competition.
When you are happy that something good has happened, you can use the phrase to be happy that something has happened:
I 'm happy that I have had my car finally repaired. — I'm so happy that my car was finally repaired.
If you are happy about something, use the phrase to be happy about something:
I 'm so happy about being hired. — I'm so happy that I was hired.
If you are very happy for someone, you can use the phrase to happy for someone:
I can't explain how happy I am for you. “I can’t tell you how happy I am for you.”

In the table below we have collected words and expressions that you can use to express joy in English.

Word	Translation	Example
cheerful	joyful, cheerful	I'm in a cheerful mood today. - Today I am in a joyful mood.
excited	very joyful	I'm so excited that we're going to Portugal! — I’m so glad that we are going to Portugal!
delighted	very joyful	I was delighted by the result of my test. — I was very happy with the test results.
thrilled	excited	She was thrilled about having a vacation in Italy. — She was delighted about her upcoming vacation in Italy.
overjoyed	Out of my mind from happiness	I'm overjoyed that my sister is coming to visit me. “I’m overjoyed that my sister is coming to visit me.”
pleased	glad, satisfied	Are you pleased about your promotion? — Are you satisfied with the promotion?
glad	glad, satisfied	I'll be glad when the conflict is over. - I will be glad when the conflict ends.
to be in a good mood	be in a good mood	It was the day before her vacation, so Anna was in a good mood . — It was the last day before the vacation, so Anna was in a good mood .
to be thrilled to bits (informal)	be delighted	Paul was thrilled to bits when I prepared his favorite pie. — Paul was absolutely delighted when I made his favorite pie.
to be over the moon (BrE)	on the seventh heaven	I was over the moon when I won the prize. — I was in seventh heaven when I won the prize.
to be on top of the world	on the seventh heaven	She was on top of the world at that party. “She felt in seventh heaven at that party.”
on cloud nine	on the seventh heaven	Tom was on cloud nine after the birth of his daughter. - Tom was in seventh heaven after the birth of his daughter.
in seventh heaven	on the seventh heaven	Parents got Dave a puppy for Christmas, and he was in seventh heaven . — Dave’s parents gave him a puppy for Christmas, and he was over the moon .
to be walking/floating on air	be very happy	When I finally passed my driving test, I was walking on the air for days. — When I finally passed the driving test, I was very happy for several days.
to be walking/floating on a cloud	be very happy	She wasn't leaving after all. He was floating on a cloud . “In the end, she decided not to leave.” He was very happy .
to have a whale of a time (informal)	have fun	We had a whale of a time on our honeymoon. — We had a great time on our honeymoon.

Sad statuses

It is extremely undesirable to keep a bad mood to yourself. By putting a sad status on your profile, you can unobtrusively draw the attention of friends to your condition and, perhaps, receive the necessary support.

As a rule, they contain a deep philosophical meaning and have a more complex structure in terms of vocabulary and grammar, and therefore open up unlimited opportunities for studying both aspects of English. Most often, sayings of great people and characters from famous literary works fall into this category. Moreover, recently there has been a clear tendency in the language towards memeticity, when a new status created by someone gradually spreads across the network.

Examples:

The road to hell is paved with good intentions. “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

It's the first day of the rest of your life. “This is the last day of the rest of your life.”

Without you all my life is nothing but this carnival of rust. – My life without you is a festival of withering.

To forgive doesn't mean to forget and to forget doesn't mean to forgive. – To forgive does not mean to forget, and to forget does not mean to forgive.

Sadness

When you have a bad day or something bad happens, we can use the adjective sad to describe our mood, but it is better to use synonyms that will diversify your speech and more accurately describe the emotions.

Word	Translation	Example
unhappy	unhappy	I was deeply unhappy at school. “I was deeply unhappy at school.
dejected	sad, disappointed	Sam sounded dejected when he told me that he hadn't got the job. Sam sounded disappointed when he told me he didn't get the job.
downcast	sad, disappointed	You looked a little downcast this morning. — This morning you looked a little sad .
down	unhappy, disappointed	Whenever I'm feeling down , I buy myself a cake. — When I feel unhappy , I buy myself a cake.
miserable	deeply unhappy	I felt miserable and blamed myself for what I had said to my sister. “I felt unhappy and blamed myself for what I told my sister.”
depressed	depressed, oppressed	After his wife broke up with him, he became depressed . — After his wife left him, he became very depressed .
heartbroken	heartbroken	Anna was heartbroken when her dog got lost. — Anna was heartbroken when her dog got lost
distressed	heartbroken	My family was distressed over the loss of our house in the storm. — My family was heartbroken over the loss of their home during the storm.
devastated	devastated, depressed	The whole city was devastated by this awful tragedy. “The whole city was depressed by this terrible tragedy.
to get (smb) down	to depress (someone), to spoil (someone's) mood	The bad weather gets me down . - Bad weather makes me depressed .

Phrases for tattoos for girls

And though she be but little, she is fierce. She's small, but still tough.
Beneath the makeup and behind the smile, I am just a girl. Under the makeup and behind the smile, I'm just a girl.
She flies with her own wings. She flies on her own wings.

She was no more no less than anything but herself. She was neither more nor less than her.
In revenge and in love, woman is more barbarous than man. In love and in anger, a woman is tougher than a man.
I spit what you think about me. About you, I don't think. I don't care what you think about me. I don't think about you.

Anger and malice

Even such negative emotions as irritation and anger need to be able to be described in English. Even at the initial levels, you learned the expressions I'm angry (I'm angry) and I feel angry (I'm angry), and today we will slightly expand your vocabulary with new vocabulary:

To say that you are angry with someone, use the phrase to be angry at/with:
I was so angry at him as he hadn't told me his plans. “I was so angry with him because he didn’t tell me about his plans.”
If you are angry about something, use the preposition about:
I don't understand what Tom's angry about . “I don’t understand why Tom is so angry .”

Word	Translation	Example
annoyed	irritated, annoyed	She was annoyed that no one had told her the class was called off. — She was annoyed that no one told her that the lesson was cancelled.
irritated	irritated	Adam was irritated with himself for his stupid behavior at the party. — Adam was annoyed because of his stupid behavior at the party.
furious	furious	Don't tell Mom I broke her favorite cup - she'll be furious . - Don't tell mom that I broke her favorite mug, she will be furious .
outraged	indignant	I was outraged by his rude and very unpleasant statement. “I was outraged by his rude and very unpleasant statement.
mad (informal)	angry	Mike was mad at his wife for damaging their car. — Mike was angry with his wife because she damaged the car.
to get cross with somebody (BrE, informal)	annoyed with someone, angry with someone	My Mom gets cross with me if I leave the kitchen in a mess. — My mother gets very angry with me if I leave a mess in the kitchen.
to be in a bad/foul mood	be in a bad/irritable mood	He seems to be in a bad mood about something. “He seems to be in a bad mood about something.”
to blow up	explode in anger	She might blow up at any second. “It could explode at any second.
hit the roof/ceiling	get very angry	Mom will hit the roof when she finds out I failed all the exams. — Mom will be very angry when she finds out that I failed all my exams.
hot under the collar (informal)	be very angry	My wife was really hot under the collar when I told her that I had lost the job again. — My wife was furious when I told her that I had lost my job again.
to fly into a rage	fly into a rage	Our teacher flew into a rage when she realized no-one had been listening to her. “Our teacher just flew into a rage when she realized that no one was listening to her.

Funeral procedure - funeral

Funerals (funeral) in English-speaking countries have their own customs. In many ways, a funeral is similar to a memorial service. Both events are necessary to honor the life of a deceased loved one. Funerals differ from memorial services in that funerals honor the deceased and say goodbye directly to his body (to memorialize a deceased person with their body present).

However, both services are an important part of the grieving process, as they provide an opportunity to share your memories associated with the deceased and show support to the grieving family (to show support to the bereaved family members).

The family of the deceased chooses a funeral home, which will handle all the preparations (for making all the arrangements). The service is conducted by a local minister, pastor, funeral director, or funeral celebrant. Next, we will note several mandatory stages of a funeral abroad.

The gathering - gathering.
It involves bringing the coffin (a coffin) into a church (a church) or a chapel (a chapel). This part is also called viewing or wake. People approach the coffin and personally say goodbye to the person. At this time, the priest reads encouraging lines from the Bible (say reassuring words from the Bible). Next, he greets all those gathered (he welcomes the attendees), sings a hymn, and prays for forgiveness. The word coffin has a synonym casket. The difference is that a new coffin that has not yet been purchased is called a casket, and the one where the human body already lies is called a coffin.
Readings and sermon - readings and sermon. This stage includes scriptural readings of psalms and hymns, followed by a sermon is preached and prayers of thanksgiving for the deceased and for mourners at the funeral. If one of the spouses dies, the woman becomes a widow (widow), and the man becomes a widower (widower). Widowhood - widowhood, orphans - orphans.
Committal and blessing - burial and blessings. The body is committed to its resting place.

In Western culture, 3 methods of burying bodies are accepted: burial (burial in the ground), entombment (burial in a grave or mausoleum above the ground, from the English tomb - grave, tombstone) or cremation (cremation). Cemetery is the final resting place, has several synonyms: cemetery, graveyard, churchyard. Non-religious funerals can be held in parks, gardens, community centers, restaurants and even on the beach. On a tombstone (headstone, tombstone) you can often find the inscription RIP (rest in peace - rest in peace).

Fear

Like any other emotion, fear can reflect many shades: from mild fear to real horror. First, let’s look at the most common adjectives with the meaning “frightened” - afraid, frightened and scared:

To say that you are afraid of someone or something, use the phrase to be afraid/frightened/scared of:
A lot of people are afraid of spiders. — Many people are afraid of spiders. She was frightened of her boss. — She was afraid of her boss.
If you are afraid to do something, you can express your feelings using the phrase to be afraid/frightened/scared to do something:
I was afraid to show anyone my scars. “I was afraid to show my scars to someone.” The child was too scared to talk. — The child was too scared to speak.

There is a slight difference in usage between the words frightened, scared and afraid. Scared sounds less formal than frightened, so you are more likely to hear it in the speech of native speakers, but afraid is the most formal variant of all synonyms.

Word	Translation	Example
alarmed	alarmed	She was alarmed as she had to perform in front of an audience. — She was anxious because she had to speak in front of an audience.
fearful (formal)	funky	Emma was fearful that she might fail the exam. — Emma was afraid that she might fail the exam.
terrified	very scared	Some passengers looked terrified as the plane took off. — Some passengers looked very scared when the plane took off.
petrified	numb with fear	Bank employees were petrified with fear when they saw a robber with a gun. — Bank employees were numb with fear when they saw a robber with a weapon.
to be scared stiff/scared to death (informal)	be scared to death	I had to make a speech, and I was scared to death . — I had to give a speech, so I was scared to death .
to freeze up	freeze in fear	I didn't know what to do. I just froze up . “I didn’t know what to do.” I just froze with fear .

Examples of beautiful-sounding words in English with translation into Russian

Below we present several categories: beautiful English words for nickname with translation, words that are suitable for the name of a group and Instagram, as well as long, short, rare words and phrases with translation in English.

Don't forget that many words can have multiple meanings or be used as different parts of speech - in the latter case, their meaning may also differ. Before choosing a word, check how it relates to the future context.

For nickname

With our nickname, most of us try to express our individuality, tell other people on the network something about our personality, sometimes even make a small statement - so those who come up with their nickname will need the most beautiful words in English.

Since many social networks, forums and other services have a limit on the number of characters in the username, short, eye-catching words for a nickname in English are suitable for it, which you can find in the list below along with the translation:

glory - glory;
rebel - rebel;
grace - grace;
miracle - miracle;
bloom – flowering;
blossom – blossom, flower;
sweetheart - cutie;
hawk - falcon;
invincible - invincible;
hurricane - hurricane.

All these beautiful English words are perfect for creating your new nickname and will attract the attention of other users.

Short and long

But the beautiful words in English don’t end there. In case your situation needs to fit within a strict character limit or you just want to keep it simple, below you will find beautiful short words in English - and perhaps they will inspire you:

peace - peace;
sunset - sunset;
dawn – dawn, dawn;
hope – hope;
rise - sunrise, ascend, rise;
pure - pure:
faith – faith;
fancy - fashionable;
light – light;
buzz – buzzing, excitement;
mist – haze, light fog;
noble - noble;
regret – regret;
fragile - fragile.

Many beautiful long words in English can look very elegant - for example, in combination with short names. In addition, among them there are quite a lot of words that are unusual and beautiful in sound - many of them are read in a non-obvious way, but at the same time much simpler than it might seem from their spelling. Here you can choose an interesting word to suit your taste:

extraterrestrial - extraterrestrial, alien;
humanity - humanity;
unbelievable - incredible;
enthusiasm - enthusiasm;
renaissance - rebirth;
immortality - immortality;
fearlessness - fearlessness;
destination – destination;
breakthrough - breakthrough;
luminous - luminous;
never-ending – never-ending, endless, eternal;
simultaneously - at the same time;
achievement - achievement;
constellation - constellation;
satisfactory - satisfactory.

For Instagram

Of course, we cannot ignore one of the most popular social networks of our time – Instagram. On this resource, the selection of a nickname can play a vital role: in recent years, many have decided to start their own business using an Instagram account, so here a correctly chosen and easy-to-remember nickname can attract new clients to you, and an unsuccessful one can, on the contrary, scare away potential subscribers.

In addition, the social network allows you to use only the Latin alphabet in usernames, so in order not to lose your audience and earnings, you can look at these beautiful words in English for Instagram and use them when creating a unique name for your account:

rainbow - rainbow;
lullaby – lullaby;
sleepwalker - sleepwalker;
fabulous - incredible;
dandelion – dandelion;
imagination - imagination;
mercy - mercy;
freedom - freedom;
golden - golden;
infinity - infinity;
twinkle - flicker.

For the group name

Another option for using beautiful English words is for the name of a group, community or public page. This function exists in the vast majority of social networks - for example, Facebook or VKontakte. Different social networks have different requirements for group names - this should be taken into account when creating a name along with the characteristics of the potential audience.

In any case, future owners of such pages will find it useful to have a selection of beautiful English words with translation into Russian - this way you can choose something that matches the theme of the community and is attractive in appearance to draw the attention of users to your page:

galaxy – galaxy;
Universe - Universe;
ultimate – the best, perfect;
craze – fashion, craze;
aesthetics - aesthetics;
unique – unique;
forever - forever, eternal, eternity, forever.

Rare words

If you want to stand out as much as possible from the crowd of other users, groups or accounts, then rare and beautiful words in English will come to your aid . Many of them don't come around very often, but that's what makes them a unique find for anyone who wants to express their own personality (or the personality of their brand) in a special way.

When searching on your own, the main thing is not to forget that the more exotic the expression you find, the greater the chance that it has a second meaning or belongs to a specific part of the language - for example, it is modern slang or, on the contrary, is considered archaic.

So, below are some of the unique and beautiful sounding words in English:

afterglow – sunset, afterglow, pleasant memory;
stardust – “star dust”, romance;
tranquility - calmness;
astonishing – amazing;
sophisticated - sophisticated;
liberty - freedom;
eternity - eternity;
righteous - righteous, fair;
nemesis – sworn enemy, retribution;
timeless – timeless, eternal;
essential - essential.

Two word phrases

Sometimes one word cannot convey all shades of meaning or looks too plain and simple. In this case, you can go further and consider using a beautiful two-word phrase in English. The list below presents some similar expressions with translation into Russian:

endless love - endless love;
amazing discovery - amazing discovery;
everlasting beauty - eternal beauty.

Tip: many more beautiful combinations of words can be found in natural English speech.

Confusion

If you just can’t concentrate on anything, everything is falling out of your hands, and you need to talk about it in English - use the phrases and expressions from the table.

Word	Translation	Example
confused	confused	She was rather confused by his words. “She was quite confused after his words.
puzzled	puzzled	Ross looked puzzled when everyone started laughing. — Ross looked puzzled when everyone started laughing.
baffled	puzzled, confused	Her rude question about my weight baffled me completely. — Her rude question about my weight completely confused me .
bewildered	puzzled, confused	I'm still rather bewildered by her unexpected resignation from her position. “I’m still a little baffled by her sudden departure from her position.”
dazed	confused, unable to think clearly	You're looking a bit dazed — has something happened? -You look a little confused . Something happened?
bemused	stumped	I was slightly bemused after she left without any explanation. “I was a little perplexed by the fact that she left without explanation.”
can't think straight (informal)	unable to think properly	I just can't think straight now because of all the events. “I’m just not able to think right now because of all these events.”
to be at a loss	confused, confused	He was at a loss which tie to choose. — He was confused which tie to choose.

Tattoo Ideas

Specific examples a little later. Let's understand the concept for now. What kind of phrase do you want?

A phrase about yourself. Something that characterizes you. It can even be one word. For example: The Princess (princess), The Eagle (eagle), The Wolf (wolf), Forever young (forever young) and so on.
Beautiful quote. About love, about life, about determination, about family, about anything. There will be plenty of these in our selection, and if it seems not enough, we have a selection: 85 beautiful quotes in English .
Quote from the song. Original and interesting. We have highlighted them in a separate section at the end of the article.

So. For examples.

Excitement

In addition to worried, there are many more adjectives that will help you describe the feeling of excitement and anxiety in English.

Word	Translation	Example
worried	concerned	I was so worried that I couldn't think straight. “I was so worried that I couldn’t think straight.”
anxious	anxious	My granny always gets anxious if we don't arrive on time. — My grandmother is always worried if we don’t arrive on time.
nervous	nervous	I always feel nervous before an exam. — I always get nervous before an exam.
uneasy	restless, tense, uncomfortable	When Mary wasn't home by midnight, I began to feel uneasy . — When Mary was not home by midnight, I became restless .
concerned (formal)	preoccupied, concerned	He was really concerned to hear that his wife had had an accident. — He was very worried when he learned that his wife had been in an accident.
bothered	excited, worried	Jerry is very bothered about what his father thinks of him. Jerry is very concerned about what his father thinks of him.
stressed (out) (informal)	exhausted, tense	He has been working for ten hours today and is really stressed out . — Today he worked for ten hours and was very exhausted .
troubled	preoccupied	Are you okay? You look a bit troubled . -Are you all right? You look a little worried .

Note that the word anxious is usually used to talk about a general feeling of restlessness and anxiety for no apparent reason. However, it is more formal than worried.

Tattoo phrases for guys

Too wild to live. Too rare to die. Too wild to live. Too rare to die.
Take a breath and be strong. Take a breath and be strong.
Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.

With pain comes strength. With pain comes strength.
Wars begin in the minds of men. War originates in people's heads.
Fear is the mind killer. Fear is a killer of the mind.

Astonishment

What if something surprising happened and you need to say it in English, but the word surprised doesn’t come close to conveying your emotions? You will find interesting options in the following table.

Word	Translation	Example
surprised	surprised	Nobody was surprised when they married. - Nobody was surprised when they got married.
amazed	amazed, extremely surprised	You'll be amazed when you see my wedding dress. - You will be very surprised when you see my wedding dress.
astonished	dumbfounded	I was astonished by the result of the test. — I was dumbfounded by the test result.
stunned	shocked	I was too stunned to say something back. — I was too shocked to say anything in response.
speechless	speechless with surprise	His words left me speechless . — His words made me speechless .
to be taken back	being surprised and not knowing how to react to the situation	I was a little taken back by her rude question. “I was a little confused by her rude question.
gobsmacked (informal)	stunned	I was absolutely gobsmacked when I saw my exam results. — I was stunned when I saw my exam results.

Look how many replacements you can find for familiar words! Try to use new vocabulary - you will sound more beautiful and natural. You can practice your new knowledge in lessons with a teacher or in English speaking clubs.

List of expressions on the topic “From sadness to joy: how to express emotions in English” (*.pdf, 132 Kb)

Statuses for social networks in English: features and role in language learning

For many, short phrases about life and love in foreign languages seem more significant and thoughtful - it’s not surprising that VK statuses in English come across more and more often today. At the same time, linguists and teachers suggest not to take them lightly: today they are a powerful means of communication that can be used to learn a language in the following aspects:

Expanding vocabulary. Even short statuses can contain new words, which are learned much easier and faster in small and concise sentences.
Study of grammatical structures. Both short and longer statuses on social networks are based on both popular and rarer grammatical constructions. Their frequent repetitions and readings make it possible to quickly remember even those rules that were difficult to master when studying using the traditional method.
Culture and history of native speakers. Just like in Russian, English statuses for social networks are aphorisms and sayings that reflect both previous and modern realities. From this point of view, this form of communication can offer a lot of interesting things.

Statuses in the English language are divided into several large semantic groups. We present to you the phrases that are most often used on social networks - it is possible that some of them will sooner or later end up on your profile.