would-be

adjective

ˈwu̇d-ˈbē 

: desiring, intending, professing, or having the potential to be

tips for would-be mothers and fathers

The conference, held over the Labor Day weekend, drew 1200 to 1300 writers and would-be writers to the Hawaiian island this year …

—John F. Baker

Possibly the most hilarious and outrageous character was Joey Tribbiani, a would-be actor who struggles to find success in his chosen profession …

—The Cheat Sheet

She's a clueless, would-be do-gooder without much self-awareness.

—Maureen Ryan

Examples of would-be in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Swinson worked with the third-team defense, and Ponder hasn't tallied a would-be sack in team drills in a week and a half. — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 10 Aug. 2026

The would-be client learned that artificially increasing his Klotho levels could potentially short-circuit the problem and wanted Sinkule’s help finding a company that could produce it for him. — Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 9 Aug. 2026

Dugger also had a would-be pick-six Wednesday on an Adrian Martinez pass deflected by Jones. — Cam Inman, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2026

In recent years, Nielsen has also had to contend with a number of would-be upstarts hoping to make inroads into its business with media buying agencies and TV companies. — Brian Steinberg, Variety, 6 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1647, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

would-be

adjective

ˌwu̇d-ˌbē

: desiring, intending, or pretending to be

a would-be poet