# 'I hope + Present' vs 'I hope + Future'



## Lovely R

I came across a sentense where 'I hope' is followed by Present Simple:

'I'll be abroad. I hope the party goes well.'

Is there a difference between this one and 'I hope the party will go well'?


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## panjandrum

The difference is that "... goes well," sounds more natural 
I hope your team wins.
I hope you get better soon.
I hope it doesn't rain this afternoon.
I hope you find this post helpful.
I hope you enjoy the WordReference forums


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## Dimcl

Lovely R said:


> I came across a sentense where 'I hope' is followed by Present Simple:
> 
> 'I'll be abroad. I hope the party goes well.'
> 
> Is there a difference between this one and 'I hope the party will go well'?


 
I'm not sure what you mean by "Is there a difference?".  Either way, he hopes that the party is a good one!


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## Lexiphile

Interesting question, Lovely.

Although the party is quite clearly in the future, "I hope the party will go well" seems very strange.  Perhaps the reason is that, when the party is actually going well, it is in the present.


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## Lovely R

panjandrum said:


> The difference is that "... goes well," sounds more natural
> I hope you find this post helpful.
> I hope you enjoy the WordReference forums


Yes, I've already found your post as well as the whole forum very helpful


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## Lovely R

Lexiphile said:


> Interesting question, Lovely.
> 
> Although the party is quite clearly in the future, "I hope the party will go well" seems very strange.


I know, it's natural for you as a native speaker to say like that not pondering on the tenses, but is there any rule, that's the question. I ran into phrases both with Future and Present after 'I hope', that's why I'm wondering.


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## Lexiphile

No rules that I know of.
Most rules in English were created "after the fact," to describe what was already common usage.  And it is the fact that this "common usage" seems to violate whatever rules there are that makes your question interesting.  You can say it with the future tense, but we just don't (usually).

English is full of anomalies and "why" questions that simply cannot be answered.  That's why this forum is such fun -- it gives bored and long-winded foreros a chance to write reams and reams of theory about why we say "A" instead of "B."


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## sound shift

Sometimes "hope" *is *followed by the future tense:

"I hope you'll come to the meeting."

I cannot point to a grammatical rule because I was never taught any grammatical rules about the tense that should follow "hope". All I can suggest, Lovely R, is that you refer to a good manual of English grammar.


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## Thomas Tompion

But in Sound Shift's case one could also say I hope you come to the meeting.

I can't think of a case (that doesn't mean there isn't one) where the future is mandatory, and can't be replaced with the present. Even if the future is very distant:

I know that in five years time you are planning to come to Australia. I hope that when you are here you will come to see me - one could perfectly well say you come to see me.

P.S. It occurs to me that when the hope is for something negative and the hope is in the nature of a command or warning that the future and present aren't really interchangeable:

I hope you won't smoke in your bedroom isn't the same as I hope you don't smoke in your bedroom.

Interestingly from the point of view of sequence of tenses when we say I hoped we usually need the conditional in the clause:

I hoped you would come to see me.


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## sound shift

Thomas Tompion said:


> But in Sound Shift's case one could also say I hope you come to the meeting.



I quite agree, Thomas, but I'm wondering whether "I hope you come to the meeting" means exactly the same as "I hope you'll come to the meeting". I think I sense in the latter an element of pleading ("Please come to the meeting"). I do not sense this element in the former. Or am I imagining things?


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## Thomas Tompion

sound shift said:


> I quite agree, Thomas, but I'm wondering whether "I hope you come to the meeting" means exactly the same as "I hope you'll come to the meeting". I think I sense in the latter an element of pleading ("Please come to the meeting"). I do not sense this element in the former. Or am I imagining things?


No, I don't think you are, SS. I too sense a higher level of pleading in the one that uses the future - I hope you'll come to the meeting.

It's a good point.


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## se16teddy

In _I hope you come to the meeting, _it is obvious (in most contexts at least) that the meeting is in the future, so there is no need to signal the future with _will. _You can put _will _in if _will _signals something other than futurity, for example consent.


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## Lovely R

You know, I looked it up in grammar manuals, but haven't found anything concerning this exact case. It just seems to me that Present Simple is used here to convey the events planned beforehand.


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## Egon Pauli

Thomas, could you please finish the explanation? You have an excellent point, just it is not clear what you mean by:

P.S. It occurs to me that when the hope is for something negative and the hope is in the nature of a command or warning that the future and present aren't really interchangeable:

I hope you won't smoke in your bedroom isn't the same as I hope you don't smoke in your bedroom.

They aren't interchangeable means which one is a warning - the first or the second?


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## Thomas Tompion

I'm sorry to have been unclear, Egon.

* I hope you won't smoke in your bedroom* is a polite way of saying *you mustn't*,* I don't want you to.

I hope you don't smoke in your bedroom *expresses a distaste for the habit, but usually does not so clearly forbid it.


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## Rudzielec

Hello!

I'm sorry to reactivate an old thread, but I thought it'd be good to keep the discussion in one place. Yesterday I came across a sentence where, for some reason, the present tense sounded strange to me and I'd love to hear a native's opinion.

"Here's my address. I hope you send me a postcard."

I *really *want to put 'll after _you _here, but I don't want to correct language that's perfectly acceptable just because I find it strange.

Please let me know what you think.


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## panjandrum

Rudzielec said:


> ...
> "Here's my address. I hope you send me a postcard."
> I *really *want to put 'll after _you _here, but I don't want to correct language that's perfectly acceptable just because I find it strange.
> ...


I really want to do that too 
But I'm not surprised by the present version. Clearly, from the earlier posts, native speakers are generally content with the present tense.
I can't explain why this example doesn't sound quite right when so many others do.


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## se16teddy

I suppose that when it comes to sending post-cards it is the thought (the will) that counts.


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## taraa

se16teddy said:


> I suppose that when it comes to sending post-cards it is the thought (the will) that counts.


Hi se16teddy
Can you explain the difference please?


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## Pertinax

Yes, I think Teddy has nailed it.

The present simple after hope already usually signals a future event, so the effect of "will" is modal: it expresses a hope that you are willing to do the act, a plea that you direct your will to that end, not a rude exhortation to do it whether you like it or not.

If there is no question of the will being engaged then the present simple is simpler and generally preferred, as is clear from Panjandrum's examples in #2.


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## taraa

Pertinax said:


> Yes, I think Teddy has nailed it.
> 
> The present simple after hope already usually signals a future event, so the effect of "will" is modal: it expresses a hope that you are willing to do the act, a plea that you direct your will to that end, not a rude exhortation to do it whether you like it or not.
> 
> If there is no question of the will being engaged then the present simple is simpler and generally preferred, as is clear from Panjandrum's examples in #2.


Thank you so much


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## Thomas Tompion

Pertinax said:


> The present simple after hope already usually signals a future event, so the effect of "will" is modal: it expresses a hope that you are willing to do the act,[...]


I think this is very often true, but what about things like "I hope you will be able to go there some time soon"?  I don't see that as expressing a hope about willingness to do something.


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## Pertinax

Thomas Tompion said:


> I think this is very often true, but what about things like "I hope you will be able to go there some time soon"?  I don't see that as expressing a hope about willingness to do something.



The context is ambiguous.  Is the "you" here suffering from some kind of physical incapacity? In that case his recovery is not a question of will and so we could say:
_  I hope you're able to go there some time soon._
We might also say this if there is some other kind of constraint on him - e.g. if he is a juror in an extended trial, or has heavy responsibilities that preclude his travelling.

Otherwise his will is certainly involved, and so a modal "will" would be more polite, just as the locution "be able to" is inserted (in this context) for politeness. He should also be willing to go; if he were unwilling then he would be going there against his will, and indeed the suggestion:
_I hope you're going there some time soon._
.. could easily carry an air of menace, as if demanding that he go there whether he likes it or not.


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## Thomas Tompion

Pertinax said:


> The context is ambiguous. Is the "you" here suffering from some kind of physical incapacity? In that case his recovery is not a question of will and so we could say:
> _ I hope you're able to go there some time soon._


Certainly.  I was simply producing a counterexample.

I should have said that I didn't see the form using the future as necessarily implying that we were presenting a question of willingness.  There are clearly instances where we aren't.


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## Pertinax

I suspect my expression "a hope that you are willing to do the act" was unclear. I did not intend by this that I was necessarily hoping for a willingness to perform the act in lieu of the act itself, but rather in addition to it. In other words, I politely hoped that the act be done willingly, rather than (say) out of a sense of obligation.


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## alrosavilla

As I see, this is not too trivial a topic even for native speakers. Could you please help me check my undertanding?
Ususally you say 'I hope you have a good time.' But what if there is a person who's greatly depressed and wants nothing. Trying to get him out of the depression, the friedns of the person send him on a trip. They know that the person doesn't care about the trip whatsoever, but they want him to restore his taste of life. And, as parting words, someone says - I hope you will have a good time.
In this context, the phrase still sounds odd? makes no sense?


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## PaulQ

alrosavilla said:


> In this context, the phrase still sounds odd? makes no sense?


I'm not sure if you are asking a question or making a statement. 

English has no future tense as such - it is constructed. *Will/shall* only indicate *present predictions* of the future: "You *will see* him if you go to his office."; "I *shall *now *perform* a magic trick." Both are what the speaker _presently thinks _is the future.

*Will *expresses volition, power and capacity, or habit:
Volition often applies to inanimate object: "The wind blows where it will blow, and there's nothing you can do about it."
*Capacity: *"Will all that fit into one box?"

If you use "*I hope*" then, by definition, you are (i) causing *will *to express volition, (ii) expressing your current volition.
*"I hope [currently] *all that* will fit* [at the time that you try to put it in] into one box ."
*"I hope [currently]* all that* fits* *[currently] *into one box ."


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## DonnyB

alrosavilla said:


> As I see, this is not too trivial a topic even for native speakers. Could you please help me check my undertanding?
> Ususally you say 'I hope you have a good time.' But what if there is a person who's greatly depressed and wants nothing. Trying to get him out of the depression, the friedns of the person send him on a trip. They know that the person doesn't care about the trip whatsoever, but they want him to restore his taste of life. And, as parting words, someone says - I hope you will have a good time.
> In this context, the phrase still sounds odd? makes no sense?


To me, it sounds odd not because of the tense, but because it doesn't really fit the context.

Usually, you wish somebody "a good time" if they're going on holiday or to somewhere like a party - in other words it carries the idea of "enjoy yourself".  But in this case the idea seems to be that the trip is intended to have more of a _therapeutic_ value: that he'll come back feeling better than when he went.


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## alrosavilla

So, the phrase 'I hope you will have a good time' is not the same as I hope You want to have a good time?'


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## PaulQ

No.
'I hope you will have a good time' -> 'I hope [that] the time that you spend [somewhere/doing something] will be enjoyable'
I hope you want to have a good time' -> I hope [that] you wish to experience an enjoyable time.


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## alrosavilla

Oxford dictionary says:
will = A deliberate or fixed desire or intention.
Plus, you say:
*Will *expresses volition, power and capacity, or habit 
For these reasons, to me (apparently mistakably), I hope you will have a good time = I hope you have the will to have a good time (enjoy yourself)
I understand that I'm wrong, but I still can't understand why. At what point my reasoning takes a wrong turn eludes me


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## owlman5

alrosavilla said:


> I understand that I'm wrong, but I still can't understand why. At what point my reasoning takes a wrong turn eludes me


Remember that people also use _will _to refer to the _future_, alrosavilla. _I hope that you will have a good time = I hope that you have a good time (in the *future* when you start doing whatever it is that you intend to do for your amusement.)_


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## alrosavilla

I'm trying to understand why '_I hope that you will have a good time' _sounds odd to a native speaker's ear. And why do some phrases like 'I hope Kate will pass the exam' sound ok.


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## owlman5

alrosavilla said:


> rying to understand why '_I hope that you will have a good time' _sounds odd to a native speaker's ear.


It sounds fine to me.  There are a lot of native speakers and a lot of different opinions, so it makes sense to collect a few of them before you decide to accept or reject something.  _I hope you have a good time _is certainly common, but there is nothing strange about _I hope that you will have a good time.  _



alrosavilla said:


> 'I hope Kate will pass the exam' sound ok.


I agree. This does sound okay.  It sounds just as normal as _I hope that you will have a good time _does.


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## alrosavilla

owlman5 said:


> There are a lot of native speakers and a lot of different opinions, so it makes sense to collect a few of them before you decide to accept or reject something.


oh, that explains a lot)) Thanks. To me these phrases are ok, but being non-native is, at times, like having your hands tied behind your back.


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## analeeh

I'm completely bewildered by some of the native responses in this thread. There seems to be a pretty strange misconception that the largely archaic meaning of 'will' as a synonym of 'want' (still reflected in the nouns 'will', 'willpower' etc as well as expressions like 'the wind goes where it will' or 'do as thou wilt') is the current meaning of the future auxiliary 'will'. 'Will' certainly carries nuances that it's difficult for natives to explain (when compared for example to 'going to') but I don't find any of your examples strange and even if I did, it certainly wouldn't be because 'will' has anything to do with volition.

This sentence is perfectly grammatical and meaningful, despite the explicitly stated absence of desire on the part of the speaker:

'I really don't want to, but I'll have to go.'

As far as 'hope' is concerned, it's perhaps more common for it to be followed by simple present, and there may be a very slight nuance between 'I hope you have a good time' and 'I hope you'll have a good time', but the two are more or less interchangeable.


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## alrosavilla

analeeh said:


> I'm completely bewildered by some of the native responses in this thread. There seems to be a pretty strange misconception that the largely archaic meaning of 'will' as a synonym of 'want' (still reflected in the nouns 'will', 'willpower' etc as well as expressions like 'the wind goes where it will' or 'do as thou wilt') is the current meaning of the future auxiliary 'will'. 'Will' certainly carries nuances that it's difficult for natives to explain (when compared for example to 'going to') but I don't find any of your examples strange and even if I did, it certainly wouldn't be because 'will' has anything to do with volition.
> 
> This sentence is perfectly grammatical and meaningful, despite the explicitly stated absence of desire on the part of the speaker:
> 
> 'I really don't want to, but I'll have to go.'
> 
> As far as 'hope' is concerned, it's perhaps more common for it to be followed by simple present, and there may be a very slight nuance between 'I hope you have a good time' and 'I hope you'll have a good time', but the two are more or less interchangeable.


Thanks for your help. Such nuances are important to me.


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## Roymalika

Hi

1) I hope they will come back soon.
2) I hope they come back soon.

A teacher has said that we normally use the present tense after "I hope", so 2) is correct.
 Is that right?


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## Thomas Tompion

Roymalika said:


> Hi
> 
> 1) I hope they will come back soon.
> 2) I hope they come back soon.
> 
> A teacher has said that we normally use the present tense after "I hope", so 2) is correct.
> Is that right?


Yes, and so is 1., as several people have said in the course of this thread.


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## Roymalika

Thomas Tompion said:


> Yes, and so is 1., as several people have said in the course of this thread.


Can you please tell me whether you find the sentence 2) more natural than the sentence 1) in BE?


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## Thomas Tompion

Roymalika said:


> Can you please tell me whether you find the sentence 2) more natural than the sentence 1) in BE?


They are both equally natural.  The thread examines the issue in some detail.


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## Mattterhorn

Hello,
After reading all the posts in this thread, I understand that both these sentences are correct, but I’d like a native speaker to confirm:
a) I hope I will be given a rise this year. I’ve taken on a lot of extra responsibilities.
b) I hope I am given a rise this year. I’ve taken on a lot of extra responsibilities.

Thank you!


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## owlman5

Hello, Mattterhorn.



Mattterhorn said:


> a) I hope I will be given a rise this year. I’ve taken on a lot of extra responsibilities.
> b) I hope I am given a rise this year. I’ve taken on a lot of extra responsibilities.


These sentences are a little off, but I don't see anything wrong with the tenses that you have used. I would express them this way: (a) _I hope that I will* get a raise this year. _(b) _I hope that I get a raise this year._ Or: _I hope that they give me a raise this year.

*Will _really isn't necessary, but it is possible and it doesn't sound wrong.


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## Mattterhorn

Thanks owlman5, this sentence is taken from an English course book, they might have forced the passive for the sake of grammar…
I was wondering if *a rise* and *a raise* are the same thing…


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## sound shift

Mattterhorn said:


> I was wondering if *a rise* and *a raise* are the same thing…


In your context, they are.
"A rise": British English
"A raise": American English


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## owlman5

You're welcome. 


Mattterhorn said:


> Thanks owlman5, this sentence is taken from an English course book, they might have forced the passive for the sake of grammar…


They might have. As sound shift mentioned, _raise _is normal in AE.


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