1
as in promising
having qualities which inspire hope
economists are offering a hopeful forecast for a healthy economy in the coming year
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in encouraging
pointing toward a happy outcome
in a hopeful response to the ad, several people called to say they'd seen our lost cat
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in candidate
one who seeks an office, honor, position, or award
the three mayoral hopefuls are going to debate on local TV
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hopeful
Ramesh Ponnuru, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2026
Longman is hopeful his most daring live comedy adventure yet will run far beyond that initial eight-episode order.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 20 Mar. 2026
Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 16 Mar. 2026
Coming up The round of Premier League games is neatly tied off on Monday night, when Champions League hopefuls Brentford host recent discoverers of competence Wolves.
—Nick Miller, New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hopeful
Adjective
Abdul El-Sayed, another Senate hopeful, touts the same policy in Michigan.
—Ramesh Ponnuru, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2026
Longman is hopeful his most daring live comedy adventure yet will run far beyond that initial eight-episode order.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 20 Mar. 2026
Noun
On the eve of the 2026 Oscars, where Ethan Hawke was nominated for his soulful turn as Broadway composer Lorenz Hart in Blue Moon, the best-actor hopeful considered his humble red-carpet origins.
—Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 16 Mar. 2026
Coming up The round of Premier League games is neatly tied off on Monday night, when Champions League hopefuls Brentford host recent discoverers of competence Wolves.
—Nick Miller, New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hopeful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hopeful
Adjective
-
This was the approach that, a little more than a decade ago, surfaced a promising new kind of malaria drug that entered clinical trials first in South Africa and then in Ethiopia.—
Ari Daniel,
NPR,
22 Mar. 2026
-
This work highlights a promising path for precisely tuning material stiffness and shaping mechanical properties on demand.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Consider signing up for a short class or workshop that could stretch your thinking and connect you with encouraging voices.—
Tarot.com,
Sun Sentinel,
21 Mar. 2026
-
Still, wanting to be a team player, Anthony is warm, friendly, and offers an encouraging word to the future CEO — despite Dougie’s obvious nerves and his random outbursts in Jamaican Patois.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Stand With Crypto, the advocacy group that helped shepherd pro-cryptocurrency candidates into Congress last election cycle, is making its first foray into this year’s midterms.—
Eleanor Mueller,
semafor.com,
26 Mar. 2026
-
There are 10 candidates in the contest, eight Democrats and two Republicans.—
Barnini Chakraborty,
The Washington Examiner,
25 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This means that previous modelling was likely overly optimistic of engine performance, and reveals that real engines will like underperform with existing designs.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Mar. 2026
-
And many borrowers began the year cautiously optimistic that the momentum would continue.—
Matt Richardson,
CBS News,
19 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Under this view, multimillionaires and billionaires could easily afford to relocate to more favorable tax jurisdictions, depriving governments of revenue.—
Aimee Picchi,
CBS News,
26 Mar. 2026
-
If winds increase in the afternoon, conditions could approach Red Flag criteria, meaning weather conditions are favorable for fires to start easily and spread fast.—
Robert A. Cronkleton
March 26,
Kansas City Star,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Following the new Grand Sport’s surprise appearance at the recent 12 Hours of Sebring, the Corvette team has officially unveiled a pair of podium contenders for its famously loyal fans.—
Lawrence Ulrich,
Robb Report,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Three of the top four contenders in the Daily Racing Form’s top 20 ranking of Kentucky Derby hopefuls are entered for Saturday’s 1 1/8-mile race at Gulfstream.—
Clark Spencer,
Miami Herald,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This warmer weather refresh of chicken and biscuits shakes up both the filling and topping for a lighter and brighter take on the classic.—
Jesse Szewczyk,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
23 Mar. 2026
-
For generations in Korea, people saved the milky water left over from rinsing rice and used it as a simple beauty treatment to make skin look brighter and smoother.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
22 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Just happy to keep this thing rolling.—
CBS New York Team,
CBS News,
23 Mar. 2026
-
Presumably every San Diego State fan will ace one of these happy tests, too.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hopeful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hopeful. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
