"Hope and Wish”

1. Hope

Oxford explains hope as "to want something to happen and think that is possible" which means "want something to happen and think it might happen". So hope is used for expectations with a very high degree of possibility. Hope can be used to refer to expectations related to the past, present, or future. However, it is generally used to refer to desires that occur in the present or future.

Example :            

a. I hope you will win.

b. All we can do is wait and hope.

c. I hope so.

2. Wish

Oxford explains wish by "to think very hard that you want something, especially something that can only be achieved by good luck or magic" which means "think very hard of something you want, especially something that can only be obtained with good luck". Thus, wish is used for hope that the degree of possibility is not very high. Therefore, wish generally refers to something that happened in the past and did not match what was expected.

Example :

a. I wish I had a new camera.

b. I wish I were tall.

c. I wish my husband would help me clean the house.

Besides being used for expectations that do not occur, wish is also sometimes used to say to someone to be happy, later on, as explained in the Cambridge dictionary that wish is "to hope or express hope for another person success or happiness or pleasure on a particular occasion "for

Example:

a. We wish you a merry Christmas.

b. I wish you health and happiness.

c. I wish her a safe journey.