Meaning
Extremely happy, carefree and high-spirited, often with a suggestion of simple contentment. Cheerful and informal. The occupational reference is obsolete, so the image may need contextual support. Regional use: Chiefly British English.
Origin
London sandboys carried or sold sand used on floors and in household cleaning. The simile is in print by 1821 in Pierce Egan's Life in London, and 'jolly as a sandboy' also circulated. Later explanations connect their cheerfulness with drink, but the evidence establishes the occupation and the saying more firmly than any single reason for the sandboy's happiness.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- As happy as a sandboy
- Jolly as a sandboy
Usage Examples
- Give Len a warm workshop and a wireless and he is happy as a sandboy.
- The children were as happy as sandboys paddling at the edge of the harbour.
- With the repair finished before noon, the foreman looked happy as a sandboy.