Emily Dickinson Lexicon

GLAD'NESS, n. [See Glad.]

Joy, or a moderate degree of joy and exhilaration; pleasure of mind; cheerfulness. They did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart. Acts ii. [Gladness is rarely or never equivalent to mirth, merriment, gayety and triumph, and it usually expresses less than delight. It sometimes expresses great joy. Esther viii. ix.]