{"id":9810,"date":"2022-10-07T17:56:06","date_gmt":"2022-10-07T17:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=9810"},"modified":"2022-10-07T17:56:06","modified_gmt":"2022-10-07T17:56:06","slug":"we-few-we-happy-few-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/we-few-we-happy-few-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"We Few We Happy Few \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you seen the phrase 'we few, we happy few' <\/strong>somewhere and would like to know more about its meaning and context? The phrase 'we few, we happy few' <\/strong>is a direct quote from a William Shakespeare play, and it makes an occasional appearance as a pop culture reference. This post unpacks the meaning, origin and correct use of the phrase.<\/p>\n

Meaning<\/h2>\n

The saying 'we few, we happy few' <\/strong>is a less common English phrase that is taken as a direct quote from one of the most popular William Shakespeare plays.<\/u><\/p>\n

The phrase in modern times can be used to imply that good luck has prevailed, or that something positive has taken place.<\/u><\/p>\n

The phrase can be used as a humorous, often exagerrated statement<\/u>. Sometimes the phrase can imply sarcasm, or that something has not gone well.<\/u><\/p>\n

The phrase can also be used as a serious statement<\/u> that implies a group of people have been victorious over an obstacle.<\/u><\/p>\n

When someone says 'we few, we happy few' <\/strong>it is more common as an exclamation or statement than it would be as a response.<\/u><\/p>\n

Use of the phrase implies that the rest of the conversation is familiar with the context in which it is being said.<\/u><\/p>\n

Most uses of the phrase 'we few we happy few' <\/strong>does not require the rest of the line to be quoted from Henry V.<\/p>\n

There are several correct ways to punctuate the phrase<\/u>, including with commas or without.<\/u><\/p>\n

Example Usage<\/h2>\n

\u201cI can't believe that we won the football game, even though the odds were totally stacked against us. Oh, we few, we happy few.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can't believe that all of us are here at the same time. What are the chances of that? We few, we happy few!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCondoms are half-price down at the Walmart today. Let's all go downtown so that we can party for cheaper. We few, we happy few!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe few, we happy few! I can't believe that we're the only kids in town who have access to a nuclear reactor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Origin<\/h2>\n

The origin of the saying 'we few, we happy few' can be found in Shakespeare's play Henry V.<\/p>\n

The play was first published somewhere in the 1600s, and the phrase would fall into common use as a figurative English saying in the 1800s.<\/p>\n

The later widespread popularity of Shakespeare's works would give rise to expressions entering popular culture, one of which is the phrase 'we few, we happy few'.<\/p>\n

Use of the phrase would continue throughout the 21st century, given some added use by its inclusion in film and television adaptations of Henry V.<\/p>\n

As a pop culture phrase, it has also been used as the title of a survival horror game released in 2016.<\/p>\n

The website Urban Dictionary does not list a definition for the phrase, even though the website lists a definition for the term 'few' and 'happy' as individual terms.<\/p>\n

Phrases Similar to We Few We Happy Few<\/h2>\n
    \n
  • Lucky<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Phrases Opposite to We Few We Happy Few<\/h2>\n
      \n
    • N\/a<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      What is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n
        \n
      • We few, we happy few<\/li>\n
      • We few we happy few<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Ways People May Say We Few We Happy Few Incorrectly<\/h2>\n

        There are several ways in which someone can use the phrase 'we few we happy few' in the wrong way, or misunderstand the meaning of the saying where it appears.<\/p>\n

        The phrase 'we few we happy few' can be used without repeating the rest of the phrase.<\/p>\n

        It is used to imply victory over something, or luck over something.<\/p>\n

        Acceptable Ways to Phrase We Few We Happy Few<\/h2>\n

        The correct way to use the phrase 'we few we happy few' is to use it to indicate victory over an obstacle, whether it is used as a serious phrase or a joking exclamation.<\/p>\n

        The phrase can be punctuated as 'we few, we happy few' or used without commas. Both render a valid use of the same phrase.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Have you seen the phrase 'we few, we happy few' somewhere and would like to know more about its meaning and context? The phrase 'we few, we happy few' is a direct quote from a William Shakespeare play, and it makes an occasional appearance as a pop culture reference. This post unpacks the meaning, origin […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9810"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9810"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9810\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9812,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9810\/revisions\/9812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}