These are all words that have to do with happiness. Aside from their word
classes, what difference do they have in nuance?
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2017-09-29T12:55:39.500
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2017-09-29T17:39:20.873
2017-09-29T17:39:20.873
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words nuances
Difference in Nuance: 嬉しい vs. 喜ぶ , 幸せ vs. 幸い vs. 幸福
One difference is that 嬉しい is more an immediate feeling, a kind of spontaneous
emotion that emerges in certain situations, whereas 幸せ is a deeper kind of
happiness which is based on more stable circumstances. When your girlfriend
gives you a great present, you feel 嬉しい in that moment. When she stays with
you and you develop a deep and fulfilling relationship together, you could
feel 幸せ.

My sense is that 幸福 is similar to 幸せ in terms of its meaning, but it is more
formal as a word (as many 漢語 are), so you would be more likely to encounter it
in written Japanese.

幸い has more of a 'lucky' or 'fortunate' meaning, usually used to refer to a
specific event which was deemed to be somehow fortuitous.
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2017-09-29T13:56:14.980
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answer