hope
verb · noun
Simple meaning
To want to happen, with a sense of expectation that it might [with that.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
hohpIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈhoʊp
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
To want (something) to happen, with a sense of expectation that it might [with that (+ clause); or (informal) with clause; or with so or (negative) not].
intransitive
To expect optimistically that one might get something (either a change in circumstance or an object) [with for].
intransitive
To place confidence; to trust with confident expectation of good [with in].
Expect and wish
noun
countable or uncountable
The feeling of trust, confidence, belief or expectation that something wished for can or will happen.
countable
The actual thing wished for.
A sloping plain between mountain ridges.
An English and Scottish topographic surname from Middle English for someone who lived in a hope, a small enclosed valley.
A place in Canada
A community in the city of Vaughan, Regional Municipality of York, Ontario.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner (estimated)
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To expect optimistically that one might get something (either a change in circumstance or an object) [with for].
Used this way, hope is a reasonably familiar word with a clearly warm, approving pull. It carries warmth, so it reads as personal rather than detached.
- Emotional tone
- Positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Hopeful and forward-looking
- Usage feel
- Warm and expressive
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use hope
- “I hope to have finished this work by tomorrow evening.”verb
- “It revived their hope of winning the pennant.”noun
- “In spite of his troubles he never gave up hope.”noun
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Having or manifesting hope.
Without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success.
With hope.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Chest for storage of clothing (trousseau) and household goods in anticipation of marriage.
United States historian noted for studies of Black American history (born in 1915).
Someone (or something) expected to achieve great success in a given field.
A point of land in southwestern South Africa (south of Cape Town).
A former province of southern South Africa that was settled by the Dutch in 1652 and ceded to Great Britain in 1814.
An act (or failure to act) that disappoints someone.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
The despair you feel when you have abandoned hope of comfort or success.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.