wishful
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
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.
“This is not just our wishful thinking, it is what we hear from our customers.”
From Barron's • May 8, 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
For the residents of Catfish Row, “your daddy’s rich” sounds wishful, ironic.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
“But if you don’t know your history you won’t know the difference between the truth and wishful thinking.”
From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos
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.
