Find Synonyms

expectation Synonyms

Another word for expectation

Choosing another word for expectation depends on context, so the 19 synonyms and similar words below are separated across 4 exact definitions and ranked by match strength.
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• noun (Context 1)

A strong belief that something will happen or be the case in the future.

Usage Example

"The company expanded its staff in the anticipation that sales would increase over the summer."

Strongest
anticipation
Strong
prediction
forecast
projection
supposition
presumption
assumption
Weak
hope

• noun (Context 2)

A belief that someone will or should achieve something, or a standard of conduct and performance required of a person.

Usage Example

"The new coach set high expectations for every player on the team."

Strong
standard
requirement
criterion
demand
benchmark

• noun (Context 3)

One's prospects of future success, advancement, or inheritance (usually used in the plural).

Usage Example

"The young scholar graduated with great expectations for a distinguished career in medicine."

Strongest
prospect
Strong
promise
potential
outlook

• noun (Context 4)

In probability theory and statistics, the weighted average value of a random variable over many independent repetitions of an experiment.

Usage Example

"To evaluate the fairness of the game, the mathematician calculated the mathematical expected value of the dice roll."

Strongest
expected value
Strong
mean

Opposites of expectation

The opposite of expectation shifts depending on context. Common opposites include:

doubt
hopelessness
unexpectedness
surprise
See all opposites of expectation

Cite this Entry


Wordmom. (2026). Synonyms for Expectation. In Wordmom Thesaurus. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/synonyms/expectation
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