wish
Americanverb (used with object)
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wishes,
present (3rd person singular)
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wished,
past participle, past
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wishing
present participle
-
to want; desire; long for (usually followed by an infinitive or a clause).
I wish to travel.
I wish that it were morning.
- Synonyms:
- crave
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to desire (a person or thing) to be (as specified).
to wish the problem settled.
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to entertain wishes, favorably or otherwise, for.
to wish someone well;
to wish someone ill.
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to bid, as in greeting or leave-taking.
to wish someone a good morning.
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to request or charge.
I wish him to come.
verb (used without object)
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wishes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wished,
past participle, past
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wishing
present participle
-
to desire; long; yearn (often followed byfor ).
Mother says I may go if I wish.
I wished for a book.
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to make a wish.
She wished more than she worked.
noun
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wishes
plural
verb phrase
verb
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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
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(tr) to feel or express a desire or hope concerning the future or fortune of
I wish you well
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(tr) to desire or prefer to be as specified
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(tr) to greet as specified; bid
he wished us good afternoon
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formal (tr) to order politely
I wish you to come at three o'clock
noun
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the act of wishing; the expression of some desire or mental inclination
to make a wish
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something desired or wished for
he got his wish
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(usually plural) expressed hopes or desire, esp for someone's welfare, health, etc
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formal (often plural) a polite order or request
Usage
What are other ways to say wish? To wish is to want or long for something. How is wish different from desire and want? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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wishsimple
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wishessimple
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have wishedperfect
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has wishedperfect
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am wishingprogressive
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are wishingprogressive
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is wishingprogressive
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have been wishingperfect progressive
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has been wishingperfect progressive
Past
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wishedsimple
-
had wishedperfect
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was wishingprogressive
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were wishingprogressive
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had been wishingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wish
First recorded before 900; Middle English verb wishen, Old English wȳscan; cognate with German wünschen, Old Norse æskja; akin to Old English wynn “joy” ( see winsome), Latin venus “charm” ( see Venus); noun derivative of the verb
Vocabulary lists containing wish
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.
See Examples For:
"The overwhelming majority of Taiwanese compatriots do not want war; they wish to live their lives in peace and hope for peaceful cross-strait exchanges," Han said at the National Day event.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
"Do I wish I'd had that advice at the time? 1,000 per cent," Ashe says.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
“Do you wish you could lose weight more easily?”
From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2026
The former describes when you are focused on the person — you wish they didn’t have the experiences or opportunities you want.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026
“I wish she had been able to never think of it again.”
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
What’s missing from this series of events, as it was from previous letters on this subject, is that your mother’s wishes have not been mentioned once during all of this.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026
Mr. El-Sayed sends his thanks and best wishes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
One woman in her early 30s, who wishes to be identified as Chery Lokko, says she prefers to travel in peace.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
In hindsight, he says he wishes he hadn’t been talked into an ARM.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026
Against my wishes I started thinking of all the things in my life that had scared me.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
Even the most partisan of England fans would have wished him well.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
Juan Escalante, who attended a concert in August, was transported right back to his childhood bedroom in Venezuela, “when I wished I had a cool room like Arnold’s!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
It wasn’t the first time I wished for an AI-powered drone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
None of the thousands of couples I’ve worked with over the past 30 years have ever told me they wished they’d bought a fancier car.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
We talked about Grace sometimes, the way she was fiery and romantic and how she wished she could do what I was doing, how the Hello Girls were inspiring girls all over the world.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
But Interior Minister Laurent Nunez stated that security forces "are not cracking down on young people" but rather "protecting" school and university students wishing to "peacefully voice their demands".
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
Somehow, after just two games, the Chargers’ offense under McDaniel has Bolts fans wishing anyone else was running the show.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
I’m not wishing another pandemic on us, mind you.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
Refugees wishing to work or engage in a trade or business can apply for a special permit.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
I call out, wishing them a long life and good luck.
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
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.
