Collocations are chunks of words or phrases that help you sound natural when speaking a foreign language. It is very important to know that you shouldn’t say “I’m working on my homework” (which makes sense), but “I’m doing my homework” because the former is a genuine collocation. In that sense, here are 15 commonly used collocations with the word “hope” to help you adopt natural English expressions as well as build up your vocabulary:
Sincere hope
Meaning: when you truly want something.
- It is my sincere hope their marriage will be a happy one.
- You are free now and we sincerely hope that you won’t break the law again.
A ray of hope
Meaning: when something gives you a small amount of hope in a difficult situation.
- In her hard life, her son was the only ray of hope.
- But in the darkest hours of war and terror, there was always a ray of hope which helped us hang on.
High hopes
Meaning: when someone is aiming at something difficult or impossible to attain.
- Thomas felt sorry because he hasn’t realised the high hopes of his parents.
- The government had high hopes for the new law of discrimination.
False hope
Meaning: when you have hopes and feelings about something that may not be true.
- I would appreciate it if you wouldn’t give my patient and his wife false hope.
- Do you really think it’s a good idea to throw false hopes at him?
Early hopes
Meaning: initial hope.
- His early hopes of becoming a doctor became true.
- The early hope that the war would end soon hasn’t been fulfilled.
Be full of hope (hopeful)
Meaning: feeling optimistic about something.
- They were full of hope they’d get the tickets.
- Mary was so hopeful about her job interview.
Hope for the best
Meaning: to hope that something will be successful.
- I had the car fixed, so we can now hope for the best.
- Popular wisdom says: hope for the best – prepare for the worst.

Cherish hope
Meaning: to always keep your hope in your mind.
- Mary cherished the hope David would propose to her.
- Many members of the resistance cherished the hope that they would win the war.
Keep hope alive
Meaning: to not stop believing in something even if it seems unlikely to happen.
- Despite the difficulties, they kept their hope of moving abroad alive.
- We should be patient and keep our hopes alive that grandpa’s condition would stabilise soon.
Cling to the hope
Meaning: hoping that something will happen although it’s not realistic.
- Sara is still clinging to the hope that Brian would eventually stop drinking.
- I still cling to the hope of being employed as an accountant in that multinational company.
Live in hope
Meaning: to be hopeful about something.
- The police said there is a small chance to get our car back, but we live in hope.
- The company I applied for the job at hasn’t called me for an interview yet but I live in hope.
Give up hope
Meaning: to stop hoping that something will happen or that something is true.
- He gave up his hopes of becoming a pilot.
- Seeing him with another woman, Mary gave up hope that he might return.`
Every hope
Meaning: feeling confident about the outcome of something.
- We have every hope of finishing the project this year.
- The patient is recovering very well, so we have every hope that he’d be home by Christmas.
Hope in hell
Meaning: refers to something impossible to achieve.
- You haven’t got a hope in hell of getting that job.
- I think that you don’t have a hope in hell of catching any fish from that river.
Hopes and dreams
Meaning: refers to everything somebody hopes for.
- What are your hopes and dreams about the future?
- She told me all about her hopes and dreams.

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1 Comment
Difference between WISH and HOPE - My Lingua Academy · 27 Mar 2022 at 12:08 pm
[…] Follow the link to learn collocations with HOPE […]