Practice
Optative sentences: meaning and examples
When a colleague starts a new job, you might say, "I hope you enjoy it," or "May it go well." Both sentences express a good wish, but the second one sounds more formal.
Recognize sentences that express a wish or hope, then choose a natural English form for the situation.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
May your journey be safe. /meɪ jʊr ˈdʒɝːni bi seɪf/
The short answer
Use hope for a possible good result: I hope you get the position. Use wish for a situation you want to be different: I wish I had more time. Use may in a formal good wish: May your journey be safe.
May your presentation go well.
Why it works: May comes before the subject your presentation. This form gives a formal good wish.
5 more examples
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I hope you enjoy the new course.
Hope introduces a possible good result in the future.
Not this:
I wish I enjoyedthe new course. What changes: Wish says that the speaker does not enjoy the course now but wants that situation to be different. -
May your trip be safe and comfortable.
May gives a formal good wish. The verb be stays in its base form after may.
Not this:
I hopeyour trip is safe and comfortable. What changes: Hope is a more ordinary way to express the same positive feeling. -
I wish I knew the answer to that question.
Knew describes a present wish here. The speaker does not know the answer now.
Not this:
I knowthe answer to that question. What changes: This statement says that the speaker has the answer. -
May the new year bring peace to your family.
This is a formal blessing or message of goodwill.
Not this:The new year
brings peaceto the family. What changes: The statement describes something as a fact instead of expressing a wish. -
Long live the local library!
Long live is a fixed expression that wishes for something to continue for a long time.
Not this:The local library
has servedthe town for many years. What changes: This statement gives information. It does not express a wish.
Read the full guide
First, decide what kind of wish you mean. Are you hoping that something possible will happen? Are you imagining a different present situation? Or are you offering a formal blessing or good wish? The meaning helps you choose hope, wish, or may.
Choose the kind of wish
A wish can be about a possible future result, an unreal present situation, or a formal message of goodwill. Choose the meaning before you choose the grammar.
I hope the weather improves tomorrow.
The weather may improve, so hope is a natural choice.
Which word fits a possible result: hope or wish?
Use hope: I hope the weather improves tomorrow.
Use hope for a possible good result
Use hope when you want something possible to happen. You can hope for your own plans or for another person's plans.
We hope the meeting ends on time.
The meeting can end on time, so the speaker uses hope for that possible outcome.
Complete the sentence: I ___ you find your keys soon.
Use hope: I hope you find your keys soon.
Use wish for a different present
Use wish when the present situation is not the one you want. English often uses a past form after wish to show that the wish is unreal now.
I wish my apartment were closer to work.
The apartment is not closer now. Were points to the imagined situation, not a past time.
Choose the form: She wishes she ___ more weekends free.
Use had: She wishes she had more weekends free.
Use may in formal good wishes
May can introduce a blessing, a formal farewell, or a written message of goodwill. Put may first, then the subject, then the base form of the verb.
May your plans work out well.
Work stays in its base form after may. Do not write May your plans works out well.
Put the words in order: may / your team / succeed.
May your team succeed.
Recognize fixed wish expressions
Some optative expressions have a fixed form. Long live means that the speaker wants a person, group, or idea to continue for a long time. Use it in an enthusiastic public message, not in routine conversation.
Long live public libraries!
This sentence is a strong public wish. It does not report what libraries are doing now.
Is Long live public libraries a report or a wish?
It is a wish that public libraries continue.
Before you go
Remember this
Use hope for a possible good result. Use wish when you want a present situation to be different, and remember that a past form can describe that unreal present wish. Use may for a formal good wish, with the subject after may and a base verb after the subject.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Optative sentences: meaning and examples"
What is an optative sentence?
An optative sentence expresses a wish, hope, blessing, or strong desire. English speakers often make this meaning with hope or wish. In a formal message, they may use may before the subject, as in May your journey be safe.
I hope you enjoy the new course.
What is the difference between hope and wish?
Use hope for a result that may happen, such as I hope you enjoy the new course. Use wish for a situation you want to be different, such as I wish I knew the answer. The form after wish can show that the present situation is unreal.
I wish I enjoyed the new course.
How do I use may in a good wish?
Put may first, then the subject, then the base form of the verb. For example, May your trip be safe and comfortable. This pattern is common in formal messages, blessings, speeches, and warm written greetings.
May your trip be safe and comfortable.
Why does wish use a past form for the present?
After wish, a past form can show that the speaker imagines a present situation that is not true now. In I wish I knew the answer, knew does not mean the speaker knew it before. It marks the answer as something the speaker wants to know now.
I hope your trip is safe and comfortable.
Can I use long live for every good wish?
No. Long live is a fixed, enthusiastic expression for wishing that a person, group, place, or idea continues for a long time. It fits a public cheer or a strong message, but hope is more natural for an ordinary everyday wish.
I wish I knew the answer to that question.