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What is the difference between 'pleased' and 'satisfied'?

The dictionary says: 'She was very pleased with her exam results.' 'The boss should be pleased with you.'

But I think I can say: 'She was very satisfied with her exam results.' 'The boss should be satisfied with you.'

Am I right?

And can we say 'a pleased customer'? If we can - 'a pleased customer' is more happier than 'a satisfied customer'?

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    In effect, pleased means happy, and satisfied means content. If you look up the meanings of happy and the meanings of content, you should understand the difference.
    – David M
    Commented Mar 22, 2014 at 21:27
  • Could you give me some examples to clear see the difference, please.
    – Selio
    Commented Mar 22, 2014 at 21:28
  • I am pleased with the turnout at the party. I am satisfied with the turnout at the party. Pleased means happy. Satisfied means a sufficient number have come.
    – David M
    Commented Mar 22, 2014 at 21:32

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Pleased is the word I would use to indicate a personal feeling of enjoyment and satisfaction, whereas I would use satisfied to indicate intellectual acceptance or acknowledgement of sufficient conformity to a particular standard.

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  • +1 Selio, they are interchangeable to a certain extent but eg "Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to introduce our guest speaker..." - you would never substitute 'satisfied' here.
    – Mynamite
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 1:14
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Pleased is a word similar to happy, but has a slightly deeper feeling.

Satisfied has way more feeling than pleased.

He was pleased that Harry answered his question = He felt glad that Harry answered his question

He was satisfied with the answer Harry gave him = He felt strongly happy with Harry's answer.

Pleased is a synonym of glad as seen above. If you are pleased, you are happy but it doesn't mean you have gotten what you really wanted. Satisfied is when you have got what you really wanted.

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  • You do not understand what "satisfied" means.
    – Hot Licks
    Commented Jan 18, 2020 at 13:49

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