Meanings
comparative more optative · superlative most optative · alternative opt.
- Expressing a wish or a choice.
an optative blessing
a. 1662 (date written), Thomas Fuller, The History of the Worthies of England, London: […] J[ohn] G[rismond,] W[illiam] L[eybourne] and W[illiam] G[odbid], published 1662, →OCLC1 more example
[…] then, in the optative retirement from hard science that building and opening a U.S.T.A-accredited and pedagogically experimental tennis academy apparently represented for him […]
1996, David Foster Wallace, Infinite Jest […], Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Little, Brown and Company, →ISBN, page 64 - grammarRelated or pertaining to the optative mood.
plural optatives · alternative opt.
- grammarA mood of verbs found in some languages (e.g. Sanskrit, Old Prussian, Tamil, and Ancient Greek, but not English), used to express a wish.
- grammarA verb or expression in the optative mood.
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna mood (as in Greek or Sanskrit) that expresses a wish or hope; expressed in English by modal verbs
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinoptātus
- Late Latinoptātīvus
- Middle Frenchoptatif
- Englishoptative
From Middle French optatif, from Late Latin optātīvus, a calque of Ancient Greek εὐκτική (euktikḗ, “related to wishing”), from Latin optātus, past participle of optāre.
More words from Middle French, Late Latin, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek εὐκτικός, εὐκτικός
- εὐκτικός (euktikós)expressing a wish
- εὐκτικός (euktikós)pertaining to the optative mood
- εὐκτική (euktikḗ)optative
Bulgarian желателен
- желателен (želatelen)pertaining to the optative mood
Esperanto optativo, optativo
- optativopertaining to the optative mood
- optativooptative
Finnish optatiivinen, optatiivi
- optatiivinenpertaining to the optative mood
- optatiivioptative
French optatif
- optatifoptative
German Optativ, Wunschform
- Optativoptative
- Wunschformoptative
Greek ευκτική
- ευκτική (efktikí)optative
Hungarian óhajtó, optativus
- óhajtópertaining to the optative mood
- optativusoptative
- óhajtó módoptative
Icelandic óskháttur
- óskhátturoptative
Italian ottativo, ottativo
- ottativopertaining to the optative mood
- ottativooptative
Japanese 希求法, 願望法
- 希求法 (kikyūhō)optative
- 願望法 (ganbōhō)optative
Korean 기원법
- 기원법 (giwonbeop)optative
Polish życzeniowy, życzący
- życzeniowyexpressing a wish
- życzącypertaining to the optative mood
- tryb życzącyoptative
Portuguese optativo
- optativooptative
Spanish optativo
- optativooptative
Swedish optativ
- optativoptative
Tamil வியங்கோள், வியங்கோள்
- வியங்கோள் (viyaṅkōḷ)pertaining to the optative mood
- வியங்கோள் (viyaṅkōḷ)optative
Turkish istek kipi
- istek kipioptative
Vietnamese thức mong mỏi
- thức mong mỏipertaining to the optative mood
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with optative
Anagrams
Cite this entry
optative. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/optative
“optative.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/optative. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “optative,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/optative.
Source: optative on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.