Word family noun pleasantry pleasure ≠ displeasure adjective pleasant ≠ unpleasant pleased ≠ displeased pleasing ≠ displeasing pleasurable verb please ≠ displease adverb pleasantly ≠ unpleasantly pleasingly pleasurably
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpleasureplea‧sure /ˈpleʒə $ -ər/ ●●● S2 W2 noun 1 [uncountable]HAPPYSATISFIED the feeling of happiness, enjoyment, or satisfaction that you get from an experience → pleasantwith pleasure She sipped her drink with obvious pleasure.for pleasure Are you taking the trip for business or pleasure?► see thesaurus at fun2 [countable]ENJOY/LIKE DOING something an activity or experience that you enjoy very much → pleasant the simple pleasures of lifebe a pleasure to read/work with/watch etc Carol was a pleasure to work with.3 → (it’s) my pleasure4 [singular] spoken formal used to be polite when you are meeting someone, asking for something, agreeing to do something etchave the pleasure of (doing) something May I have the pleasure of seeing you again? It’s been a pleasure to meet you.It’ll be a pleasure/With pleasure (=used to respond to a request) ‘Give the kids a hug for me.’ ‘With pleasure.’5 → at your pleasure6 → at His/Her Majesty’s pleasureCOLLOCATIONSverbstake pleasure in (doing) somethingHe takes great pleasure in boasting about his big salary.get pleasure from/out of somethingYoung children get a lot of pleasure from dressing up.find pleasure in (doing) somethingI find great pleasure in reading.give (somebody) pleasureOver the years, painting has given me a lot of pleasure.bring pleasure to somebody (=give someone pleasure)His singing has brought pleasure to millions.derive pleasure from something formal (=get pleasure from it)I derive great pleasure from playing chess.adjectivesgreat/enormous/immense pleasureSteinbeck’s books have brought enormous pleasure to many people.sheer/pure pleasureHe studied ancient languages for the sheer pleasure of learning.genuine/real pleasureShe smiled with genuine pleasure.perverse pleasure (=unreasonable, surprising, or bad)Some people derive perverse pleasure from the suffering of others.phrasesa source of pleasureHer garden was a constant source of pleasure. THESAURUSpleasure the feeling you have when you are doing something you enjoy or when something very nice has happened to youMost craftsmen get a lot of pleasure out of making things.His music has brought pleasure to people all over the world.happiness the feeling you have when you are happyHappiness is more important than money.Pauline was willing to do anything for her children’s happiness.I doubt she’ll find happiness with Gary.joy especially written a deep feeling of great happiness, because something good has happenedIt’s hard to describe the joy we felt, seeing each other again after so many years.They danced with joy when they heard the news.delight great happiness and excitement, because of something good that has happenedTo the audience’s delight, she agreed to play another song.Imagine my delight when I found out that the house was for sale.contentment a quietly happy and satisfied feeling, especially because you are happy with your work, your life etcHe moved to the country and found contentment for the first time in his life.She settled back in her chair and sighed with contentment.euphoria /juːˈfɔːria $ jʊ-/ an extremely strong feeling of happiness and excitement that continues for a short timeThe whole country experienced a period of euphoria after the war ended.the euphoria that parents feel after the birth of a childelation /ɪˈleɪʃən/ formal a strong feeling of happiness and excitement, especially because you have achieved somethingAfter she had made her first landing, she experienced a great sense of elation.The troops’ sense of elation at the victory was not to last. Examples from the Corpus
pleasure• Walking, or just standing still, had become a pleasure.• A really good game of basketball is a pleasure to watch.• His music has brought pleasure to people all over the world.• I don't very often read for pleasure.• Her singing has given pleasure to so many people over the years.• One of her greatest pleasures was walking in the mountains.• In fact they've been instrumental in providing some of the greatest pleasures in my life to date.• Cooper took obvious pleasure in announcing the merger.• Still, the thought gave me quite a jolt of pleasure.• Most craftsmen get a lot of pleasure out of making things.• My father always got a lot of pleasure from being with his grandchildren.• When she woke in the morning, it was to clear blue skies, and she gave a sigh of pleasure.• Are you taking the trip for business or pleasure?• Ted enjoyed the simple pleasures of life: his family, his home, and his garden.• I have said before that one of the most appealing things about this boy was the pleasure that he took in drawing.• The pleasure of having a vote is that I can exercise my own opinion.• His French was excellent, and he took pleasure in speaking it.• I noticed with pleasure how much happier he seemed.• In our headlong pursuit to acquire wealth and worldly pleasures, Christians have become virtually indistinguishable from the rest of the world.with pleasure• "Give the kids a hug for me." "With pleasure."be a pleasure to read/work with/watch etc• As is plain from this, Carol was a pleasure to work with.• The high-low button on the gear lever is a pleasure to work with; so is the forward-reverse selector.have the pleasure of (doing) something• Could he accordingly have the pleasure of treating her to a deckchair and listening to the band with her?• I've assembled his biography brick by brick, just so I can have the pleasure of taking it apart.• She thought even of a proposal which she could have the pleasure of turning down.• May I hope that you too enjoyed our talk - and may I have the pleasure of calling on you.• If so, may I have the pleasure of proposing you?• We did not have the pleasure of hearing from you and it shows.• I intend to travel extensively during the summer and I may not have the pleasure of meeting you.• We had the pleasure of meeting with the President privately.Origin pleasure (1300-1400) Old French plaisir; → PLEASE2 