adjective

hopeful

/ˈhoʊpfəl/ · say it: HOPE·ful

feeling optimism about the future

In Emotions & Moods

In more detail

1. (adjective) feeling or showing hope that something good will happen; optimistic

2. (adjective) likely to succeed or be successful; promising

Examples

1. She felt hopeful about her job interview tomorrow.
2. The new treatment looks hopeful for patients with this disease.

How to use hopeful

Hopeful describes an emotional state of expecting positive outcomes or viewing something as promising. It differs from optimistic in that hopeful can also apply to situations or signs themselves, not just people's attitudes. Use it for forward-looking attitudes or encouraging developments, often in personal, professional, or general contexts.

Common phrases

feel hopeful
hopeful about the future
a hopeful sign
remain hopeful
seem hopeful

Synonyms

optimistic · positive · encouraged · confident · promising

Opposites

pessimistic · discouraged · hopeless

Word family

hope (noun) · hopefully (adverb) · hopefulness (noun) · hopelessness (noun)

A common mistake

Learners sometimes use hopefully as an adjective to modify a noun (e.g., 'a hopefully future'), when it functions as an adverb meaning 'in a hopeful manner' or, more controversially, 'it is hoped that'.

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