The superlative form of 'happy,' meaning the most joyful, content, or satisfied state possible.
From Old English 'hap,' meaning luck or fortune, plus the suffix '-y' to make an adjective. 'Happy' originally meant fortunate or lucky, not necessarily joyful. The superlative 'happiest' adds '-est,' the standard English superlative ending. Over time, the meaning shifted from lucky to joyful and satisfied.
It's fascinating that 'happy' once meant 'lucky'—that tells you something deep about human psychology: people who felt lucky were the ones who seemed most happy! The word shows that happiness and fortune were once seen as the same thing.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.