hope

/hoʊp/

/həʊp/

Other forms: hoped; hopes; hoping

Hope is something that you want to happen, like your hope to visit Paris this summer, or the feeling that good things will come. If you make it to the final round of a tournament, that gives you hope.

Hope can also be a verb that means "strive for or wish," as in your hope to become a doctor someday. To hope is to want something to happen, but if instead you said that you intend to become a doctor, that suggests becoming a doctor is more of a goal than a dream. Hope, on the other hand, is more emotional. In fact, some scholars believe it's linked in meaning to hop, in that someone who hopes "leaps in expectation."

Definitions of hope

1. noun

   the general feeling that some desire will be fulfilled
   “in spite of his troubles he never gave up hope”

   antonyms:

   despair

   the feeling that everything is wrong and nothing will turn out well

   types:

   hopefulness

   the feeling you have when you have hope

   encouragement

   the feeling of being encouraged

   optimism

   the optimistic feeling that all is going to turn out well

   sanguineness, sanguinity

   feeling sanguine; optimistically cheerful and confident

   type of:

   feeling

   the experiencing of affective and emotional states
2. noun

   a specific instance of feeling hopeful
   “it revived their hope of winning the pennant”

   type of:

   anticipation, expectancy

   an expectation
3. noun

   grounds for feeling hopeful about the future
   synonyms: promise

   types:

   rainbow

   an illusory hope

   type of:

   expectation, outlook, prospect

   belief about (or mental picture of) the future
4. noun

   someone (or something) on which expectations are centered
   “he was their best hope for a victory”

   types:

   great white hope, white hope

   someone (or something) expected to achieve great success in a given field

   type of:

   individual, mortal, person, somebody, someone, soul

   a human being
5. noun

   one of the three Christian virtues
   type of:

   supernatural virtue, theological virtue

   according to Christian ethics: one of the three virtues (faith, hope, and charity) created by God to round out the natural virtues
6. verb

   expect and wish
   “I hope she understands that she cannot expect a raise”

   synonyms: desire, trust

   type of:

   wish

   hope for; have a wish
7. verb

   be optimistic; be full of hope; have hopes
   “I am still hoping that all will turn out well”

   antonyms:

   despair

   abandon hope; give up hope; lose heart

   type of:

   desire, want

   feel or have a desire for; want strongly
8. verb

   intend with some possibility of fulfilment
   “I hope to have finished this work by tomorrow evening”

   synonyms: go for

   type of:

   be after, plan

   have the will and intention to carry out some action