Try Our Apps
Dictionary.com

follow Dictionary.com

Famous Last Words

wish

[wish] /wɪʃ/
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
1.
to want; desire; long for (usually followed by an infinitive or a clause):
I wish to travel. I wish that it were morning.
2.
to desire (a person or thing) to be (as specified):
to wish the problem settled.
3.
to entertain wishes, favorably or otherwise, for:
to wish someone well; to wish someone ill.
4.
to bid, as in greeting or leave-taking:
to wish someone a good morning.
5.
to request or charge:
I wish him to come.
verb (used without object)
6.
to desire; long; yearn (often followed by for):
Mother says I may go if I wish. I wished for a book.
7.
to make a wish:
She wished more than she worked.
noun
8.
an act or instance of wishing.
9.
a request or command:
I was never forgiven for disregarding my father's wishes.
10.
an expression of a wish, often one of a kindly or courteous nature:
to send one's best wishes.
11.
something wished or desired:
He got his wish—a new car.
Verb phrases
12.
wish on,
  1. to force or impose (usually used in the negative):
    I wouldn't wish that awful job on my worst enemy.
  2. Also, wish upon. to make a wish using some object as a magical talisman:
    to wish on a star.
Origin of wish
Middle English
Old English
900
before 900; (v.) Middle English wisshen, Old English wȳscan; cognate with German wünschen, Old Norse æskja; akin to Old English wynn joy (see winsome), Latin venus charm (see Venus); (noun) Middle English, derivative of the v.
Related forms
wisher, noun
wishless, adjective
interwish, verb (used with object), noun
outwish, verb (used with object)
Synonyms
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.com
1. crave. 5. direct, order. 12. will, want.
Synonym Study
1.Wish, desire, want indicate a longing for something. To wish is to feel an impulse toward attainment or possession of something; the strength of the feeling may be of greater or lesser intensity: I wish I could go home. Desire, a more formal word, suggests a strong wish: They desire a new regime. Want, usually colloquial in use, suggests a feeling of lack or need that imperatively demands fulfillment: People all over the world want peace.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2017.
Cite This Source
Examples from the Web for wish
Contemporary Examples
Historical Examples

  • I have a wish to have wit and to reason about things with decent people.

    The Middle Class Gentleman Moliere

  • "I wish we could stay and see the end of this," said one of the members.

    Still Jim Honor Willsie Morrow

  • No one, however, had supposed that the Honorable Heman might wish to buy it.

    Cy Whittaker's Place Joseph C. Lincoln

  • "I wish you could see him in full action," Oscar was saying.

    Still Jim Honor Willsie Morrow

  • I wish I could match up some of those pieces of White Canton, captain.

    Glory of Youth Temple Bailey
British Dictionary definitions for wish

wish

/wɪʃ/
verb
1.
when tr, takes a clause as object or an infinitive; when intr, often foll by for. to want or desire (something, often that which cannot be or is not the case): I wish I lived in Italy, to wish for peace
2.
(transitive) to feel or express a desire or hope concerning the future or fortune of: I wish you well
3.
(transitive) to desire or prefer to be as specified
4.
(transitive) to greet as specified; bid: he wished us good afternoon
5.
(transitive) (formal) to order politely: I wish you to come at three o'clock
noun
6.
the act of wishing; the expression of some desire or mental inclination: to make a wish
7.
something desired or wished for: he got his wish
8.
(usually pl) expressed hopes or desire, esp for someone's welfare, health, etc
9.
(often pl) (formal) a polite order or request
See also wish on
Derived Forms
wisher, noun
wishless, adjective
Word Origin
Old English wӯscan; related to Old Norse öskja, German wünschen, Dutch wenschen
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cite This Source
Word Origin and History for wish
v.

Old English wyscan "to wish," from Proto-Germanic *wunskijanan (cf. Old Norse æskja, Danish ønske, Swedish önska, Middle Dutch wonscen, Dutch wensen, Old High German wunsken, German wunschen "to wish"), from PIE *wun-/*wen-/*won- "to strive after, wish, desire, be satisfied" (cf. Sanskrit vanati "he desires, loves, wins," Latin venus "love, sexual desire, loveliness," venerari "to worship;" see Venus). The noun is attested from c.1300. Wish fulfillment (1901) translates German wunscherfüllung (Freud, "Die Traumdeutung," 1900).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Idioms and Phrases with wish

wish

In addition to the idiom beginning with wish also see: if wishes were horses
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source

Word of the Day

Difficulty index for wish

All English speakers likely know this word

Word Value for wish

10
9
Scrabble Words With Friends

Related Words

Nearby words for wish

Heartbreak