wishful
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- unwishful adjective
- unwishfully adverb
- unwishfulness noun
- wishfully adverb
- wishfulness noun
Etymology
Origin of wishful
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.
“Hopes for a quick wind-down of the Iran war faded, contrary to the wishful market action earlier in the week,” writes Rosenberg Research’s David Rosenberg.
From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026
It was confusion, or maybe wishful thinking, or was it outright defiance?
From Slate • Mar. 25, 2026
Modest to a fault, “Midwinter Break” seems to float like something cautious and wishful, hoping along with the audience that this union’s individual strains will fall into harmony once more.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2026
A return to a new "golden era" is "wishful thinking," says Dr Yu Jie.
From BBC • Jan. 28, 2026
It was hard to love a woman that always made you feel so wishful.
From "Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston
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.
