as in candidates
one who seeks an office, honor, position, or award
the three mayoral hopefuls are going to debate on local TV
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hopefuls
After Itsaragrisil eventually summoned security to escort Bosch out of the auditorium, other pageant hopefuls stood up to follow suit, as seen in the livestream feed.
—
Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
His list of social-media endorsements in the campaign’s final days included dozens of other GOP hopefuls, but not her.
—Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 6 Nov. 2025
This change will undoubtedly increase the level of competition overall, with the stakes particularly high for Ryder Cup hopefuls.
—Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Unexpected success from last season, coupled with some elite transfers, means the Wolverines are legitimate title hopefuls.
—Scott Phillips, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
Gubernatorial hopefuls in New Jersey and Virginia make their final push ahead of Election Day.
—Kayla Hayempour, NBC news, 3 Nov. 2025
The Santa Barbara Film Festival is once again bringing out the Oscar hopefuls.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 30 Oct. 2025
Some hopefuls delivered the lines as zingers, with a comedic precision.
—Tatiana Siegel, Variety, 27 Oct. 2025
Statistics show Chad Brown, trainer of Classic hopefuls Sierra Leone and potential rabbit Contrary Thinking, and Bill Mott, who has Sovereignty, get some of their best results with horses coming off layoffs of 60 days or more.
—Kevin Modesti, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Oct. 2025
Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
His list of social-media endorsements in the campaign’s final days included dozens of other GOP hopefuls, but not her.
—Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 6 Nov. 2025
This change will undoubtedly increase the level of competition overall, with the stakes particularly high for Ryder Cup hopefuls.
—Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Unexpected success from last season, coupled with some elite transfers, means the Wolverines are legitimate title hopefuls.
—Scott Phillips, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
Gubernatorial hopefuls in New Jersey and Virginia make their final push ahead of Election Day.
—Kayla Hayempour, NBC news, 3 Nov. 2025
The Santa Barbara Film Festival is once again bringing out the Oscar hopefuls.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 30 Oct. 2025
Some hopefuls delivered the lines as zingers, with a comedic precision.
—Tatiana Siegel, Variety, 27 Oct. 2025
Statistics show Chad Brown, trainer of Classic hopefuls Sierra Leone and potential rabbit Contrary Thinking, and Bill Mott, who has Sovereignty, get some of their best results with horses coming off layoffs of 60 days or more.
—Kevin Modesti, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hopefuls
Noun
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But now some of Wall Street’s billionaires—even ones who backed candidates running against Mamdani—are offering their help in light of his win.—
Nino Paoli,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
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Both candidates had coattails, pulling along fellow Democrats as Republican turnout sagged.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Instead, this team bullied one of the top NFC playoff contenders from start to finish.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
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Performers like Olivia Dean and PinkPantheress have pretty much provided the soundtrack for TikTok this past year, and are being viewed as strong contenders in that category, along with Ravyn Lenae and Megan Moroney.—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Her decision comes two weeks after council members opened the process to new applicants, following a deadlock after city leaders could not agree who should be appointed to fill the seat.—
Hannah Elsmore,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Nov. 2025
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After a marathon of presentations and interviews Thursday, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors narrowed a field of 12 applicants to three finalists for sheriff — a position the board now has the rare opportunity to fill.—
Ryan Macasero,
Mercury News,
8 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hopefuls.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hopefuls. Accessed 22 Nov. 2025.
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