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Cloud nine

//ˈklaʊd ˈnaɪn// noun

Definitions

Noun

1
Often in the phrase on cloud nine: a state of bliss, elation or happiness. idiomatic, uncountable
"He was on cloud nine for days after she agreed to marry him."
2
a state of extreme happiness wordnet
3
A state of fantastic or impractical dreaming or thinking. idiomatic, nonstandard, possibly, uncountable
"Now, the system approach, needless to say, wants to help out in that particular problem, but it lives up on cloud nine for the most part. This is one of the reasons that it has not made more headway than it has in the civilian agencies of government."

Etymology

The origin of sense 1 (“a state of bliss”) is uncertain; however, the following etymology has been suggested: * The first edition of the International Cloud Atlas (1896), which defined ten types of cloud, described the ninth type as the cumulonimbus which rises to 10 km (6.2 miles), the highest a cloud can be. Compare cloud seven (“state of complete happiness or euphoria”), which may have originated from confusion of cloud nine with seventh heaven. Sense 2 (“a state of fantastic or impractical dreaming or thinking”) may be due to a confusion between sense 1 and the phrase head in the clouds.

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