Learn Hardcore Chinese: zhè gè jiéguǒ ràng wǒmen hěn gāoxìng.

to let / to allow
- 老师让我们先走。 – The teacher let us leave first.
to ask / to tell someone to do something (in instructions)
- 妈妈让我买牛奶。 – Mom told me to buy milk.
to make / to cause (causative, like in this sentence)
- 这结果让我们很高兴。 – This result makes us very happy.

In your sentence, 让 is used in sense 3: to make / to cause.
So you can think of the pattern as:

A 让 B + (很 + adj) = A makes B (very) adj.

Could we use 使 (shǐ) instead of 让 (ràng)? What is the difference?

Yes, you can say:

这个结果使我们很高兴。

使 and 让 both can mean to make / to cause, but the nuance is different:

让
- Very common in everyday spoken Chinese.
- Neutral and natural in conversation.
- Used in many patterns (let, ask, make, yield, etc.).
使
- More formal and literary.
- Feels a bit written or bookish if used in casual speech.
- Frequently found in written texts, reports, formal speeches.

So:

Everyday speech: 这个结果让我们很高兴。
Formal writing: 这个结果使我们很高兴。

Both are correct; the difference is mostly formality and style.

Why do we need 很 (hěn) before 高兴? Does it always mean very?

In modern Mandarin, when an adjective is used as a predicate (after a subject) to describe a state, it is usually preceded by a degree word like 很.

我们很高兴。 – We are (very) happy.

If you say just:

我们高兴。

it can sound unnatural or like a contrastive statement (something like we ARE happy as opposed to not being happy), depending on context.

About the meaning of 很:

Literally, 很 means very.
But in many everyday sentences, especially with common adjectives like 高兴, 忙, 热, it often does not strongly emphasize very; it can function more like a neutral link marking the adjective as the predicate.

So 我们很高兴 is usually best translated as We are happy or We’re very happy, depending on context.

In your sentence, 很 is doing both jobs:

grammatically linking the adjective, and
adding at least a mild sense of quite / very.

Can I use something stronger than 很, like 非常? How does it change the meaning?

Yes, you can replace 很 with other degree words:

非常高兴 – extremely / very happy
特别高兴 – especially happy
高兴极了 – exceedingly happy (very strong)

Examples:

这个结果让我们非常高兴。 – This result makes us extremely happy.
这个结果让我们特别高兴。 – This result makes us especially happy.

Compared to 很高兴, these alternatives sound stronger and more explicitly emotional.
很高兴 is moderate and very natural in many situations.

Why do we say 这个结果 instead of just 这结果? Is the measure word 个 really necessary?

个 (gè) is a measure word / classifier, and Chinese normally requires a measure word between a demonstrative like 这 or 那 and a noun:

这 + 个 + 结果 – this + (generic classifier) + result

So the standard pattern is:

这 + measure word + noun

In speech, you will sometimes hear people say 这结果 without 个, especially in faster or informal speech. But:

这个结果 is the standard, fully correct form.
这结果 is more colloquial / casual, and not always acceptable in more careful or formal contexts.

As a learner, it’s safer to always include 个 here: 这个结果.

Is 这 (zhè) here a pronoun like this, or an adjective like this (one) result?

Functionally, 这 here is a demonstrative determiner, just like this in this result in English.

The structure is:

这 – this
个 – measure word
结果 – result

Together: 这个结果 – this result.

You could also say 这一个结果, but that usually:

Sounds more emphatic or contrasty, like this one particular result (as opposed to others).
Is less neutral than 这个结果.

For normal use, 这个结果 is the default.

What exactly does 结果 (jiéguǒ) mean? Can it be a verb like to result?

In this sentence, 结果 is a noun meaning:

result
outcome
consequence

Examples as a noun:

比赛的结果 – the result of the match
这个结果很好。 – This result is very good.

结果 is not normally used as a verb meaning to result in standard modern Mandarin.

However, 结果 can also be a conjunction / adverb in narratives, meaning as a result / in the end:

我去得很早，结果店还没开。
I went very early; as a result, the store wasn’t open yet.

But in your sentence it is clearly the noun: this result.

Is the word order fixed? Could I say 我们因为这个结果很高兴 or 我们对这个结果很高兴 instead?

Yes, you can express the same idea with different structures:

Original causative pattern:
- 这个结果让我们很高兴。
  This result makes us very happy.
Using 因为 (because):
- 我们因为这个结果很高兴。
  We are happy because of this result.
Using 对…很高兴 (happy about …):
- 我们对这个结果很高兴。
  We are happy about this result.

Differences in feel:

Pattern with 让 puts the cause in subject position and emphasizes the result-causing effect.
因为 and 对 versions put 我们 first and emphasize our feeling about the result.

All are grammatical; which one you use depends on what you want to foreground:

the result causing happiness (use 让), or
our happiness about the result (use 因为 or 对).

What is the difference between 高兴, 开心, and 快乐? Could I replace 高兴 here?

These three are close but not identical:

高兴 (gāoxìng)
- happy, glad
- Very common, especially when reacting to some event or news.
- Works very naturally here.
开心 (kāixīn)
- happy, in a good mood
- Feels slightly more colloquial and about personal enjoyment or fun.
- You could say: 这个结果让我们很开心。 It is natural, especially in speech.
快乐 (kuàilè)
- happy, joyful, often used in greetings and more general well-being
- Common in phrases like 生日快乐 (happy birthday) or 祝你天天快乐.
- Saying 这个结果让我们很快乐 is grammatical but can sound a bit stiff or less idiomatic for a specific event’s outcome.

In this sentence, 高兴 is the most neutral and natural choice.
开心 is also fine in spoken Chinese.

How are 很 and 高兴 pronounced together? Is there any tone change (tone sandhi)?

Individually:

很 – hěn (3rd tone)
高兴 – gāo (1st) + xìng (4th)

In isolation, you might say them as hěn gāoxìng.

In real connected speech:

The 3rd tone of 很 often becomes a half-third tone (it dips but doesn’t fully rise).
It may sound closer to hén gāoxìng (low-dipping then up) rather than a full hěn.

There is no standard sandhi rule that changes it to 2nd tone (like 3rd + 3rd → 2nd + 3rd).
Just remember:

Don’t over-pronounce a full, slow hěn.
Keep it short and light before 高兴.

Can we drop 我们 or 让 in this sentence?

Dropping 我们 (we):
- 这个结果让人很高兴。
  This result makes people very happy. / This result is very pleasing.
Here 人 means people (in general).
If the context already makes clear who is happy, you might also say something shorter like:
- 这个结果很让人高兴。
  This result is very pleasing.
Dropping 让 and keeping 我们:
- 我们对这个结果很高兴。
  We are very happy about this result.
This is a different pattern (对 + sth + 很高兴), not just dropping 让 from the original structure.

You cannot simply say:

✗ 这个结果我们很高兴。 (without 让 or other linking words)

That sounds incomplete or wrong unless part of a bigger sentence with special emphasis.
In the original A 让 B 很 adj pattern, 让 is necessary.

Does this sentence talk about the present or the past? Why is there no tense marking like 了?

Chinese does not mark tense the same way English does.
The sentence:

这个结果让我们很高兴。

can be understood as:

This result makes us very happy (now).
This result made us very happy (when we got it).

The time reference comes from context, not from tense endings.

Why no 了?

让…很高兴 describes a state or reaction caused by the result.
Adding 了 here (for example, 这个结果让我们很高兴了) is unusual and not the standard way to express completion in this pattern.

In most contexts, native speakers would simply use the sentence as is, and the listener will infer whether it’s present or past from the situation or other surrounding sentences.