optimism
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optimism
A life-affirming, confident, and hopeful basic attitude. It is the belief that things will develop for the better and that a positive outcome is likely.
Trotz der vielen Rückschläge verlor sie nie ihren Optimismus.
Despite the many setbacks, she never lost her optimism.
The ending '-ismus' (-ism) is very common in German. It often denotes a worldview, a doctrine, or a mental attitude, as here with the belief in the good.
Sein unerschütterlicher Optimismus ist ansteckend.
His unshakable optimism is contagious.
'Optimismus' (optimism) is the noun in a word family. A person with this attitude is 'der Optimist' (the optimist), and the corresponding quality is described with the adjective 'optimistisch' (optimistic).
Er ist ein unverbesserlicher Optimist.
He is an incorrigible optimist.
'Optimismus' (optimism) is often combined with certain verbs and adjectives. Typical are 'seinen Optimismus bewahren' (to keep one's optimism) or 'verlieren' (to lose it), as well as 'vorsichtiger Optimismus' (cautious optimism) or 'grenzenloser Optimismus' (boundless optimism).
Selbst in schweren Zeiten bewahrte er sich seinen Optimismus.
Even in difficult times, he kept his optimism.
hope
'die Hoffnung' and 'der Optimismus' both have to do with a positive view of the future. 'Hoffnung' usually refers to a specific wish or a specific situation: for example, you hope for good news. 'Optimismus' is more of a general attitude: you basically believe that things will develop well. The words can be confused because both sound positive. As a simple guideline: hope often has a concrete goal, while optimism describes a person's attitude more generally.
Mit ihrem Optimismus motiviert die Chefin das ganze Team.
With her optimism, the boss motivates the whole team.
Nach dem Vorstellungsgespräch machte sich Ali Hoffnung auf die Stelle.
After the job interview, Ali got his hopes up about the position.