wish
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: enpr: wĭsh
ipa: /wɪʃ/
rhymes: -ɪʃ
homophone: whish (wine–whine merger)
Forms: form: wishes
Etymology: From Middle English wisshen, wischen, wüschen, from Old English wȳsċan (“to wish”), from Proto-West Germanic *wunskijan, from Proto-Germanic *wunskijaną (“to wish”), from Proto-Indo-European *wenh₁- (“to wish, love”).
Cognate with Scots wis (“to wish”), Saterland Frisian wonskje (“to wish”), West Frisian winskje (“to wish”), Dutch wensen (“to wish”), German wünschen (“to wish”), Luxembourgish wënschen (“to wish”), Yiddish ווינטשן (vintshn, “to wish”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål ønske (“to wish”), Faroese ynskja (“to wish, to desire”), Icelandic æskja, óska (“to wish”), Norwegian Nynorsk ønskja, ønskje, ønska, ønske, ynskja, ynskje (“to wish, to desire”), Swedish önska (“to wish”). Via PIE cognate with Latin Venus, veneror (“venerate, honour, love”), English wonder.
Senses: examples: text: It is my wish that the bequest (should) be given to an almshouse.
text: make someone's wish come true
text: Send this message to six beings of your acquaintance, and your greatest wish shall come true!
ref: 2010, BioWare, Mass Effect 2 (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU!:
glosses: A desire, hope, or longing for something or for something to happen.
examples: text: make a wish
text: LESTER: You believe in wishes? I mean, you believe they come true?
CHESTER: Nah. I believe in wishes, but I don't believe they come true. Not unless it's a real easy wish, like "I wish I was at a birthday party." But you gotta blow out all the candles, or else the wish don't come true. If one candle stays lit, you don't get your wish.
ref: 2004, George Carlin, When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?, New York: Hyperion Books, →ISBN, →OCLC, →OL, page 237:
glosses: An expression of such a desire, often connected with ideas of magic and supernatural power.
examples: text: My dearest wish is to see them happily married.
text: You have my best wishes.
text: "I suppose all old soldiers are the same," said Mrs White. "The idea of our listening to such nonsense! How could wishes be granted in these days? And if they could, how could two hundred pounds hurt you, father?" / "Might drop on his head from the sky," said the frivolous Herbert.
ref: 1901, W. W. Jacobs, The Monkey's Paw:
glosses: The thing desired or longed for.
qualifier: Sussex
glosses: A water meadow.
Derived terms: sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: best wishes
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: death wish
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: fish one's wish
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: good wishes
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: if wishes were horses, beggars would ride
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: make a wish
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: wish away
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: wishbone
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: wish-cycling
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: wishful
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: wish list
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: wishlist
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: wish-list
sense: Terms derived from the noun "wish"
word: your wish is my command
Related terms: precatory
velleity