On a pleasant summer evening, we are sitting on benches at a beach on Phili

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Angliholic  #452964  Fri, 14 Dec 07 12:07 AM

On a pleasant/happy/cheerful/joyful summer evening, we are sitting on benches at a beach on Philip Island.

Do all of the bolded words fit in the above sample? Thanks.

  
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Yankee  #452965  Fri, 14 Dec 07 12:15 AM
Hi Angliholic

You can use pleasant, happy or cheerful and they'd all suggest similar feelings to me. Joyful suggests a much more extreme feeling of happiness to me.  I think there would have to be a very special reason in order to feel joyful about sitting on a bench -- i.e. more than just the simple fact that Philip Island is a nice place.
  
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Angliholic  #452988  Fri, 14 Dec 07 01:03 AM

Thanks, Amy.

Got it!

By the way, are the following all but identical?

I'm happy/pleasant/cheerful to see your points.

  
nona the brit  #453200  Fri, 14 Dec 07 05:22 PM

I'm happy to see your point. Ok

Cheerful and pleasant really do not work in this sentence.

The phrase 'I'm happy to' doesn't usually mean that doing something fills the person with happiness. It is just a set phrase - a way to say 'I don't mind doing X/I'm going to do X'.

I'll tell my clients 'Ill be happy to post another copy of your invoice' - a polite way to respond to a request whereas actually inside I'm fuming that they are wasting my time AGAIN! Grrrrrrr..clients....grrrrr

  
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Angliholic  #453283  Sat, 15 Dec 07 12:14 AM
 Nona The Brit wrote:

I'm happy to see your point. Ok

Cheerful and pleasant really do not work in this sentence.

The phrase 'I'm happy to' doesn't usually mean that doing something fills the person with happiness. It is just a set phrase - a way to say 'I don't mind doing X/I'm going to do X'.

I'll tell my clients 'Ill be happy to post another copy of your invoice' - a polite way to respond to a request whereas actually inside I'm fuming that they are wasting my time AGAIN! Grrrrrrr..clients....grrrrr

Thanks, GG, for your helpful reply.

But my main problem is why on one occasion all of the three words are apt, while on another only one does the trick.

By the way, I'm not sure of the meaning of the bolded part. Could you shed more light? Thanks.

  
nona the brit  #454054  Mon, 17 Dec 07 12:51 PM

The situations are different as in your example you are talking of the emotions of the people.

In 'happy to do something', as I explained, it is often just a polite way to say 'I'll do something' and doesn't usually involve the emotion of happiness.

post another copy of your invoice - put another copy of your invoice in the mail to you.

  
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