wishful

[wish-fuhl]

adjective

1. having or showing a wish; desirous; longing.

wishful

/ ˈwɪʃfʊl /

adjective

1. having wishes or characterized by wishing

Other Word Forms

• wishfully adverb
• wishfulness noun
• unwishful adjective
• unwishfully adverb
• unwishfulness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of wishful¹

First recorded in 1515–25; wish + -ful

Example Sentences

“I accept there is a degree of wishful thinking,” he says regarding his belief in his painting, which doesn’t make him any less charming a subject for the show.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Yet wishful thinking and therapeutic benefits don’t make something true.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

This was of course wishful thinking as well as a political nonstarter.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It’s a shot in the arm for those who believe that taxing the rich will redirect money toward working stiffs, a proposition some critics say is “wishful thinking” and would lead to capital flight.

Read more on MarketWatch

But wishful thinking won’t change human nature or the physics of our atmosphere.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal