Chinese Blessing 希望: Meaning & Design Guide
希望 means “to hope”, pronounced xī wàng. Below: each character broken down, and how the phrase works as a wallpaper.
Character by character
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning | Strokes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 希 | xī | rare; hope, expect, strive for | 7 |
| 望 | wàng | to look at, look forward; to hope, expect | 11 |
Per-character data: Unihan (Unicode).
Words using these characters
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 希望 | xī wàng | to hope | newest-2 |
| 哈希 | ha1 xi1 | hash (computing) | — |
| 希冀 | xi1 ji4 | (literary) to hope | — |
| 失望 | shī wàng | disappointed | newest-4 |
| 愿望 | yuàn wàng | desire | newest-5 |
Words: HSK vocabulary list · meanings: CC-CEDICT.
Size and layout for 希望
希望 is evenly weighted (7–11 strokes across 2 characters), so it holds together well in a straight line or a square block without optical adjustment. With 18 strokes in total it needs more room than a single character: give it a square or A3 ratio rather than a narrow phone crop.
Using 希望
希望 is a set phrase meaning “to hope”, pronounced xī wàng. Because it is fixed, changing a character changes the meaning entirely — check the wording with a native reader before it goes on skin or paper. Regular script (楷书) keeps every stroke countable, which matters when someone checks the character. Avoid mirroring or rotating the character, and avoid very fine or cursive styles at small sizes, where strokes merge into shapes that read as a different character.
Frequently asked questions
What does 希望 mean?
希望 means “to hope”.
How is 希望 pronounced?
希望 is pronounced xī wàng.
Is 希望 a fixed expression?
Yes — it is a set phrase, which is safer than assembling characters yourself. Fixed expressions keep their established wording and meaning.
How should 希望 be laid out?
Keep all characters the same size on an even baseline, and do not mirror or rotate any of them.
Which style suits 希望?
Bold regular script keeps every stroke clear. With multiple characters, avoid very fine or highly cursive styles — the smaller each character gets, the more the strokes merge.
Do I need to verify the phrase?
Yes. Confirm the wording, the meaning and the full context with a native reader, and check that the phrase is not a quotation about misfortune or parting.
How many strokes in total?
希望 is written with 18 strokes across 2 characters — which is why it needs more space than a single character.
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Character data: Unihan (Unicode) · words: HSK vocabulary & CC-CEDICT · How we verify this