May, would and hope

[tufguy]

Hi guys,

Please tell. If I have to say something that I want to be happened in the near future. What should I say. For example "May she call me" or "May he come early" or "May I get my diploma asap" or I need to say "I wish I woukd get my diploma asap". Can we also say "I hope she calls" or "I hope I get diploma asap"?

 

[Matthew Wai]

I hope I/he/she will do something.

Not a teacher.

 

[tufguy]

So when do we use "I wish something would happen"?

 

[Grumpy]

Hi guys,

Please tell. If I have to say something that I want to [] happen in the near future. What should I say? For example "May she call me" or "May he come early" or "May I get my diploma asap", or do I need to say "I wish I would get my diploma asap". Can we also say "I hope she calls" or "I hope I get diploma asap"?

It all depends on the context.
The word "may" is used when you are asking someone's permission for something to happen. So here are some suitable contexts:
"May she call me?" Context: Asking you girlfriend's mother to allow her daughter to call you.
"May he come early?" Context: Asking your friend's boss to let him leave work early.
"May I get my diploma asap?" Context: Asking your teacher to send you your diploma as soon as possible.

"Wish" and "hope" are both expressions of what you want to happen, so they could be addressed to anyone, including yourself. You are not specifically asking for their permission; you are merely passing on your hopes and aspirations as part of a broader conversation.
Hence:
"I wish/hope I could get my diploma asap." (Use "could" instead of "would") Context: Talking to a friend about how much you are looking forward to receiving your diploma.
"I hope she calls." Context: To your girlfriend's mother, who has just said that you may certainly call one another.

 

[jawgar]

"Wish" and "hope" are verbs. They may be followed by a relative clause beginning with relative pronoun "that". "That" is often omitted in speaking but should not be omitted in formal writing.
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil....e-and-sentence/verb-patterns/relative-clauses

I wish that my friend would visit me.

I hope that he brings some beer.

"May" and "could" are modal (helping) verbs that modify a main verb. They have many meanings and are not always interchangeable.
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/english-grammar/verbs/modal-verbs

"May" and "could" can imply possibility, or uncertainty. NB also look at "might"

Tomorrow may/might/could be hot.

He may/might/could come tomorrow if he is not busy.

I wish I could speak Chinese. - Here "could" means "have ability"

*I wish I may speak Chinese. - not allowed
*I wish I might speak Chinese. - not allowed

 

[Matthew Wai]

I wish I could speak Chinese.

Does it denote unlikelihood?

Not a teacher.

 

[emsr2d2]

Does it denote unlikelihood?

Not a teacher.

It certainly denotes that, at the moment, you cannot speak Chinese. It simply expresses the wish that you were able to. There is no way to tell if the person might continue with the rest of their life without learning Chinese or if he/she might decide a couple of weeks later to start taking Chinese classes.

 

[Matthew Wai]

I wish that my friend would visit me.

Similarly, does it denote that the speaker's friend will probably not visit him/her?

Not a teacher.

 

[emsr2d2]

It suggests (to me) that perhaps the friend has offered/promised to visit in the past and has cancelled, or simply that the speaker would like their friend to come and visit.

John: What's wrong?
Jane: I'm bored.
John: Why?
Jane: There's no one else around. I'm really lonely. I wish my friend Sarah would come and visit me.
John: Has she ever visited you there?
Jane: Not yet, no. She keeps saying she will but she never sorts out a date.
John: I hope she visits soon.
Jane: Me too.

 

[oldbei]

Not a teacher

Here is how I undertand "hope" and "wish" these two words, without checking any references:

- They both can be used to express that somebody wants something to happen;
- If you want to emphasize the wishful part of the happening, meaning its likelihood or possibility is not the chief concern, you use "wish" as in "I wish I were 10 years younger" or "he wished her good luck;"
- If you want to denote the happening is realistic or achievable with effort, you use "hope" as in "I hope that the weather will be warm enough when we get there" or "he hoped that his son would become a doctor one day."