Origin of wish

before 900; (v.) Middle English wisshen, Old English wȳscan; cognate with German wünschen, Old Norse æskja; akin to Old English wynn joy (see winsome), Latin venus charm (see Venus); (noun) Middle English, derivative of the v.

synonym study for wish

1. Wish, desire, want indicate a longing for something. To wish is to feel an impulse toward attainment or possession of something; the strength of the feeling may be of greater or lesser intensity: I wish I could go home. Desire, a more formal word, suggests a strong wish: They desire a new regime. Want, usually colloquial in use, suggests a feeling of lack or need that imperatively demands fulfillment: People all over the world want peace.

OTHER WORDS FROM wish

wish·er, noun wish·less, adjective in·ter·wish, verb (used with object), noun out·wish, verb (used with object)

Example sentences from the Web for wish

British Dictionary definitions for wish

wish
/ (wɪʃ) /

verb

noun

See also wish on

Derived forms of wish

wisher, noun wishless, adjective

Word Origin for wish

Old English wӯscan; related to Old Norse öskja, German wünschen, Dutch wenschen

Idioms and Phrases with wish

wish