The children played happily in the playground, laughing and running around.

Meaning: The children were enjoying themselves in the place made for them to play, by laughing and running around.

Choice of Words: Playground is a place specially designed for children to play in. Happily means feeling or showing pleasure or contentment. When we say "played happily," we mean that the children were enjoying themselves while playing.

Alternative Expressions

The children were playing happily in the playground, laughing and running around.

Meaning: This sentence describes a group of children who are playing in a playground and having a good time. They are laughing, running around, and enjoying themselves, and they have been doing so for a period of time.

Choice of Words: The children is the subject of the sentence and it shows who is doing the action. Were playing is the past continuous tense of the verb play and it means to be engaged in an activity for enjoyment or recreation over a period of time. Happily is an adverb that describes how the children were playing and it means with joy or contentment. In is a preposition that shows the location of the children and it means within or surrounded by. The playground is the object of the preposition in and it means an area of land set aside for children to play in. Laughing and running are present participles that describe what the children were doing while they were playing and they mean to make sounds of amusement and to move quickly on foot, respectively. Around is an adverb that describes the direction of the children's movement and it means in a circular or curving path.

The children had been playing happily in the playground, laughing and running around.

Meaning: This sentence describes a group of children who have been playing in a playground and having a good time for a period of time prior to a certain point in the past. They have been laughing, running around, and enjoying themselves.

Choice of Words: The children is the subject of the sentence and it shows who is doing the action. Had been playing is the past perfect continuous tense of the verb play and it means to have been engaged in an activity for enjoyment or recreation over a period of time prior to a certain point in the past. Happily is an adverb that describes how the children were playing and it means with joy or contentment. In is a preposition that shows the location of the children and it means within or surrounded by. The playground is the object of the preposition in and it means an area of land set aside for children to play in. Laughing and running are present participles that describe what the children were doing while they were playing and they mean to make sounds of amusement and to move quickly on foot, respectively. Around is an adverb that describes the direction of the children's movement and it means in a circular or curving path.

Related Expressions