GLAD'NESS, noun [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 2:46. [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 8:9.]
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI