Would you use "hopefully" like this in a sentence:

[grammargirl@zirk.us]

Would you use "hopefully" like this in a sentence:

Hopefully, the treaty will be ratified.

(I'm going to compare how people feel about this sentence today to an older survey that used the same sentence.)

[mewsleah@meow.social]

@grammargirl not sure i'd put a comma there, but otherwise that's how i'd prefer to write that

[ramsey@phpc.social]

@grammargirl I answered “yes,” but I hate it.

In less conversational writing, I’d probably reword it to say “I hope the treaty will be ratified” because saying “I am hopeful the treaty will be ratified” just makes you sound like an awkward pedant.

[christopherbrown@mastodon.social]

@grammargirl Now you have me analyzing the sentence and questioning my answer, everything.

[juancnuno@mastodon.social]

@grammargirl I replied Yes. I "would" as in I wouldn't refuse. I'd prefer to say, "The treaty will be ratified hopefully."

[djohngo@mastodon.social]

@grammargirl I would, but I also know it's wrong.

[jaymerryfield@mstdn.ca]

@grammargirl depending on the context, I would think this is a fair usage of the word hopefully, though there's certainly context missing.

[mewsleah@meow.social]

@grammargirl (when i say i'm not sure, i'm not being picky - i really do mean sometimes i do and sometimes i don't and i don't quite know why either way)

[ramsey@phpc.social]

@grammargirl Also, this has lived rent free in my head for 27 years.

[apostateenglishman@mastodon.world]

@ramsey @grammargirl As a general rule I try to avoid unnecessary commas in formal writing. But my issue here is not with the comma, but with the word "hopefully" which implies lack of confidence in the negotiations.

Regardless of the context, I'd probably say we *expect* the treaty to be ratified.

[ramsey@phpc.social]

@ApostateEnglishman @grammargirl I took it to be more about the use of the adverb and less about the content of the statement, but you’re right—it does give the impression that one is not very confident in the outcome.

[chigaze@cosocial.ca]

@grammargirl Yes but I question the comma. When I say it out loud there’s no pause there.

[downes@mastodon.social]

@grammargirl Even though I know it's wrong, I'm going to use it, because it sounds a lot better than something like "It is to be hoped that the treaty will be ratified."

[flowerpot@mas.to]

@grammargirl Depending on the context, I would likely state it as, "I hope the treaty will be ratified."

[colorblindcowboy@mastodon.art]

@grammargirl I’d avoid it because of the risk of misreading.

[colorblindcowboy@mastodon.art]

@grammargirl if we mean it will be signed in a hopeful manner than “The treaty will be signed with feelings of great hope for … “ would have more impact.

If it’s hoped they’ll sign it, then why not say who hopes it?

[christoff@yem.bouncingaroundtheroom.online]

@grammargirl I tend to write like a speak, part of editing is "fixing" that loose narrative flow to being something people want to consume, perhaps.

At this point though, I'd settle for anything that is purely and solely written by flesh and blood humans.

It can feel like I'm constantly talking to humans via LLM middleman.

[lhauser@mefi.social]

@grammargirl I'd use it, even though I'm pretty sure it's not right (the treaty, after all, is not hopeful).

[apostateenglishman@mastodon.world]

@ramsey @grammargirl Yeah, my creative writing was improved when I read that Stephen King almost never uses adverbs - one of the tricks behind his captivating prose style. He even said that "the road to Hell is paved with adverbs."

Once you get into the habit of avoiding them, writing that uses them a lot ("Especially in dialogue attribution," added Martin wearily) becomes...jarring.

[overholt@glammr.us]

@grammargirl That feels like a pedantry battle no one’s fighting anymore. It felt very old fashioned to me the first time I read it (Strunk & White?) decades ago.