Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Mikejelai]

"I wish you luck." (This sounds good to me)

"I hope you luck." (sounds awkward to me, but it conveys the message - but why is it wrong??)

I couldn't give the student any reason other than it just sounds awkward. Anyone have a better explanation?

[Slowmotion]

Just a collocation i think

ask him in Korean why they can't say 해 복 많이 얻으세요 if 받다 and 얻다 mean the same thing. Or why you can't say 기대 없다 ('no expecations').

[lifeinkorea]

Maybe this is too simple:

I hope you VERB
I hope it's ADJECTIVE

I wish you ADJECTIVE/NOUN
I wish you WOULD VERB

[alljokingaside]

hope (as a transitive)
�verb (used with object)
6. to look forward to with desire and reasonable confidence.
7. to believe, desire, or trust: I hope that my work will be satisfactory.

wish (as a transitive)
�verb (used with object)
1.to want; desire; long for (usually fol. by an infinitive or a clause): I wish to travel. I wish that it were morning.
2.to desire (a person or thing) to be (as specified): to wish the problem settled.
3.to entertain wishes, favorably or otherwise, for: to wish someone well; to wish someone ill.
4.to bid, as in greeting or leave-taking: to wish someone a good morning.
5.to request or charge: I wish him to come.

courtesy of dictionary.com

hope, as a transitive verb, doesn't quite mean the same as wish does here

[winterfall]

Grammar aside, hope & wish mean different things.

hope = strong desire to have a certain outcome

wish = polite desire to have a certain outcome

Though of course your KET will never understand that.

[8 years down]

Not getting into grammar here, but I'm often asked when to use each.

Other than a few expressions such as "We wish you a merry Christmas." I explain the use of hope vs. wish like this:

Hope: wanting something that is possible
Wish: wanting something that is impossible

example:
"I hope the boss lets us go early today." (could happen)
"I wish it was Friday." (impossible to suddenly become Friday)

It usually holds up.

[edwardcatflap]

I wish you'd change your definition of hope and wish. It isn't correct.

[shcforward]

[edwardcatflap]

I wish to disagree with you both

[8 years down]

[toph]

I think the confusion is verb+subject+object agreement.

Both sentences are using the verbs (e.g., wish and hope) in the simple present tense. However, the first is correct because "wish" in the simple present can be used with the subject and object provided (e.g., you and luck).

Therefore, "I wish you luck" requires no change, because verb+subject+object agreement are all there.

But, the second sentence reads as such: "I hope you luck." Clearly, it reads awkwardly, and this is because there is confusion in the v+s+o agreement. To fix this you can just add "to receive" in the simple present, and this would solve the confusion:

"I hope you RECEIVE luck." (Technically, any verb can be placed there, but that's just an example to make sense with the story).

This works because "to receive" is working on the object (e.g., luck), while "to hope" is working on the subject (e.g., I). Whereas before, "hope" was the only working verb in the sentence, which threw off the v+s+o agreement.

Hope this helps~

[edwardcatflap]