adjective
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having or expressing hope
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giving or inspiring hope; promising
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hopeful
Explanation
If you're hopeful about something, you're optimistic. You think it's going to turn out OK. Your team has been doing well in practice, so you're hopeful that you'll win the finals. Hopeful comes from the word hope, meaning "optimism about a future event," and the suffix -ful, meaning "full." So if you're hopeful, you're full of hope: you think something good is going to happen. You might be hopeful that you'll be offered a job after your great interview. Used as a noun, hopeful can describe a promising person who wants to succeed at a particular goal. The charismatic young politician is a hopeful for the next election.
Vocabulary lists containing hopeful
The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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Emotions on Display
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In the Mood? 100 Words to Describe Emotions
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"I'm deeply hopeful that President Trump will raise my husband's case with President Xi Jinping at the summit next week," his wife, Sylvia Zin, testified to Congress on Wednesday.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
Macklemore said in his Monday statement he was hopeful this turn of events would not mean an end to his friendship with Sheeran and he was grateful for the opportunity to play on tour, regardless.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
But with memory chips hot again, investors are hopeful that Intel can get back in on the action.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
“I’m hopeful for a settlement that assures that Paramount and Warner Bros. will maintain their operations and remain a significant economic and employment force in Los Angeles.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
She jiggles her phone from side to side, her hopeful gaze sliding back and forth between us.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
