happy as a clam

as happy as a clam

Meaning

• To be very happy.
• Someone who is content and which shows on him.

Example Senteces

1. Although the job does not pay very well, she is as happy as a clam there.
2. The students were as happy as clams when they heard that the teacher is not going to be coming in that day.
3. He always does his work on time, no wonder his boss is as happy as a clam.

Origin
Open clams often give a picture of a smile. Hence the origin is speculated to be from an open clam rather than a closed one. The phrase, however, had an addition to it which has been trimmed over the years. The full text read, ‘as happy as a clam at high water'. It originated in the United States, speculated around the beginning of the 19th century.  It has been used exactly as it is seen today in 1833's ‘The Harpe's Head – A Legend of Kentucky'. In 1848, John Russell Bartlett used it in his ‘Dictionary Of Americanisms – A Glossary of Words And Phrases Usually Regarded As Peculiar To The United States'. The phrase has been popular ever since and especially used more by the people at the coast of New England.