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Added 9 October 2026

hope

/ˈhəʊp/ noun

In Latin: spērō Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about hope at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A specific instance of feeling hopeful.
it revived their hope of winning the pennant
The general feeling that some desire will be fulfilled.
in spite of his troubles he never gave up hope
Grounds for feeling hopeful about the future.
there is little or no promise that he will recover

verb

Expect and wish.
I trust you will behave better from now on
Be optimistic; be full of hope; have hopes.
I am still hoping that all will turn out well
Intend with some possibility of fulfilment.
I hope to have finished this work by tomorrow evening

Origin

From Middle English hopen, from Old English hopian (“hope”), from Proto-West Germanic *hopōn; further etymology unclear. Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian, West Frisian hoopje (“to hope”), Cimbrian hòffan (“to hope”), Dutch hopen (“to hope”), German, Luxembourgish hoffen (“to hope”), Vilamovian höfnan (“hope”), Yiddish האָפֿן (hofn, “to hope”), Danish håbe (“to hope”), Norwegian Bokmål håpe (“to hope”), Norwegian Nynorsk håpa, håpe (“to hope”), Swedish hoppas (“to hope”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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