Happiness is...

In the last lesson, we discussed the uses of das Unglück, often translated as "misfortune" or "bad luck" in English. Let's take a happier approach this week and look at some of the uses of das Glück and some words related to it. Das Glück is often translated as "lucky," especially when combined with the verb haben:

Mann, Mann, Mann, da hab' ich noch mal Glück gehabt, hä!

Man, man, man, I was lucky again, right!

Caption 32, Die Pfefferkörner - Cybermobbing
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Das Glück can also mean "happiness":

Und wie lange dauert überhaupt das Glück?

And how long does happiness last after all?

Caption 6, Die Toten Hosen - Ertrinken
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Glücklich is an adjectival variant of das Glück:

Glücklich und zufrieden legten sie sich anschließend zur Ruhe.

Happy and satisfied, they afterwards lay down to rest.

Caption 62, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten
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Der Glückwunsch can be translated as "congratulations" or "best wishes":

Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag!

Heartfelt best wishes on your birthday!

Caption 22, Mama arbeitet wieder - Kapitel 3: Papa ist weg
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Further Learning
There are dozens of German compound words that are formed with the noun das Glück, among them der Glücksbringer, die Glückseligkeit, der Glücksgriff, das Glücksspiel, and die Glückszahl. See if you can guess what these words mean without using a dictionary, and then go to Yabla German and see how they are used in a real world context.