NYT Dictionary

GLAD

/ɡlæːd/
AdjectiveVerbNounGLADGrade 3

Accepted in official NYT Spelling Bee puzzle years: 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026

Meaning

Pleased; happy; gratified.

Etymology

Origin: Old English

From Middle English glad, gled, from Old English glæd (“shining; bright; cheerful; glad”), from Proto-Germanic *gladaz (“shiny; gleaming; radiant; happy; glossy; smooth; flat”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰladʰ-, from *ǵʰelh₂- (“to shine”). Cognate with Scots gled, glaid (“shining; bright; glad”), Saterland Frisian glääd (“smooth; sleek”), West Frisian glêd (“smooth”), Dutch glad (“smooth; sleek; slippery”), German glatt (“smooth; sleek; slippery”), Danish, Norwegian and Swedish glad (“glad; happy; cheerful”), Icelandic glaður (“glad; joyful; cheery”), Latin glaber (“smooth; hairless; bald”), Russian гла́дкий (gládkij, “smooth”). Doublet of glatt.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

cheer upgladdenexhilarategladiolusgladiolahappybeamingbeatifiedblessedblissful

Antonyms

crankydepresseddowncastheavypeevishsadsorrowful

NYT Puzzle Appearances

Accepted in 8 recorded puzzles:

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