Hopes &Ambitions
hope / would like / plan + infinitive · dreams and long-term goals
Your level · You are here
Get Talking · Section 1
5 minStart the conversation
Where do you hope to be in five years — work, life, place?
Name one ambition you've had for a long time but haven't acted on yet.
What's one small thing you'd like to achieve this month?
Grammar · Section 2
8–10 minhope / would like / plan / dream + the right pattern
hope/would like/plan + TO + infinitive. dream + OF + -ing.
- Each ambition verb has its own grammar.
- (1) HOPE TO + infinitive — for things you genuinely want and think possible: 'I hope to travel more next year.' Also HOPE (that) + clause: 'I hope you get the job.' (2) WOULD LIKE TO + infinitive — softer, often used for polite or hypothetical wishes: 'I'd like to learn Italian one day.' (3) PLAN TO + infinitive — implies real planning: 'I plan to apply in September.' (4) DREAM OF + -ing — for long-held, possibly unrealistic ambitions: 'I dream of opening my own café.' KEY DETAIL: 'dream of' takes -ing; 'hope', 'would like', 'plan' take 'to + infinitive'.
- Mixing them up ('I dream to open…' / 'I hope opening…') is the most common B1+ mistake.
- hope to → realistic want.
- would like to → polite or softened ambition.
- plan to → concrete intention with steps.
- dream of → big, long-term, possibly far-off.
e.g. I hope to finish my degree next year.
| Verb | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| hope | to + infinitive | I hope to travel more. |
| would like | to + infinitive | I'd like to learn Italian. |
| plan | to + infinitive | I plan to apply in September. |
| dream | of + -ing | I dream of opening a café. |
I hope to finish my master's by next summer.
I'd like to live abroad for a year.
I plan to save 200 a month from January.
She dreams of running her own studio.
I hope you have a great time.
Not this
I dream to open my own café.
Say this
I dream of opening my own café.
'Dream' takes 'of + -ing', not 'to + infinitive'.
Memory tip
Dream OF doING. Everything else: hope/like/plan + TO + verb.
Natural English
'I'd like to' is far more natural than 'I want to' in polite conversation about ambitions — 'want' can sound blunt.
Question 1.Which is correct?
Question 2.Which is most polite?
Question 3.Which implies real planning?
Question 4.Which is INCORRECT?
Build the sentence → spot the natural chunks → say it aloud → reply like a real conversation.
1.Rebuild the sentence — then say it aloud.
2.Rebuild the sentence — then say it aloud.
3.Rebuild the sentence — then say it aloud.
Quick check 1.Choose the correct one:
Vocabulary · Section 3
5–7 minWords & phrases to learn
Ambition
a strong wish to achieve something
In context
"My ambition is to teach abroad."
Now try it yourself
Name one ambition you're not afraid to say out loud.
Long-term goal
a goal for several years ahead
In context
"My long-term goal is to run my own business."
Now try it yourself
State one long-term goal.
Short-term goal
a goal for the next weeks or months
In context
"A short-term goal of mine is to read one book a month."
Now try it yourself
Name one short-term goal.
Aim
purpose; what you're trying to achieve
In context
"My aim this year is to speak English without translating in my head."
Now try it yourself
State your aim for this course.
Achieve
to succeed in doing something difficult
In context
"I want to achieve fluency, not perfection."
Now try it yourself
Name one thing you've achieved that you're proud of.
Pursue
to work towards something over time
In context
"She's pursuing a career in design."
Now try it yourself
What are you pursuing right now?
Take the plunge
to commit to a big decision
In context
"I finally took the plunge and quit my job."
Now try it yourself
Describe a moment you took (or want to take) the plunge.
End up
to finally arrive at a situation, often unexpectedly
In context
"I ended up loving a city I never wanted to visit."
Now try it yourself
Describe somewhere or something you 'ended up' doing.
Pick at least three words from above and use each one in a sentence about your real life. Say each one aloud before you write.
Ask your teacher (or a partner) a question that uses one of today's words. They reply using a different word.
Rank today's words from most to least useful for you this week. Defend your top choice.
Finish: "Honestly, I'd say…" using one of today's words.
Tip: aim to reuse at least two of these words later in the Speaking and Writing tasks.
Tap an item on the left, then tap its match on the right.
Pronunciation · Section 4
3–4 minWeak forms in 'hope to', 'plan to', 'would like to'
'to' becomes /tə/ — barely there. 'I hope to' /aɪ ˈhəʊp tə/. 'I'd like to' /aɪd ˈlaɪk tə/. 'I plan to' /aɪ ˈplæn tə/. Stress the content verb that follows: 'I hope to TRAVel', 'I'd like to LEARN', 'I plan to APply'.
- • I HOPE tə FINish by SUMmer
- • I'd LIKE tə LIVE abROAD
- • I PLAN tə APply in SepTEMber
- • I DREAM of RUNning my OWN STUDio
Reading · Section 5
8–10 minThe right word for the right size of want
English has more than one word for 'wanting something in the future', and the differences are not decoration. They tell the listener how serious you are, how far away the goal is, and how much you've actually thought about it.
At the most concrete end is 'plan'. If you say 'I plan to apply for the master's in September', a fluent listener assumes you've already looked into the course, checked the deadline, and probably saved the page. 'Plan' carries a small administrative weight; it makes a promise to your future self.
'Hope' is gentler. 'I hope to travel more next year' is a real want, but it leaves room for the world to interfere. You hope to; you'd be disappointed if you didn't; but you're not yet committed. 'Hope' also reaches out to other people in a way the other verbs don't — 'I hope you get the job' is a sentence about somebody else's future, not yours.
'Would like to' is the polite one. 'I'd like to learn Italian one day' softens the want, sometimes because you're being modest, sometimes because you're not yet ready to commit. In job interviews, 'I'd like to develop my skills in…' is almost always more natural than 'I want to'.
And 'dream of' is the biggest and farthest. 'I dream of opening my own café' is allowed to be slightly unrealistic. It's a statement about who you'd like to be, not what's on the calendar. Notice the grammar shift: dream takes 'of + -ing', not 'to + infinitive'. Mixing these up — 'I dream to open' — is the single most common mistake at B1+ when learners talk about ambitions, and it's the kind of small error that immediately marks an answer as non-native.
Question 1.According to the text, if you say 'I plan to apply for the master's in September', what does a fluent listener assume?
Question 2.How does the text say 'hope' differs from 'plan', 'would like', and 'dream of'?
Question 3.Why does the text say 'I'd like to develop my skills' is better than 'I want to' in a job interview?
Question 4.What is the text's main argument about the differences between hope, would like, plan, and dream?
Q1.The text says 'I want to' is more natural than 'I'd like to' in a job interview.
Q2.The text says 'dream' takes 'of + -ing', not 'to + infinitive'.
Listening · Section 6
8–10 minA career coach and a client talking about goals
Listening audio
Tap play to listen. Replay as many times as you need.
Show transcript
Priya:So tell me — when you imagine your work life in five years, what do you actually see?
Marcus:I dream of running my own design studio, honestly. Small team, picky about clients.
Priya:Good — that's the dream. Now let's separate dream from plan. What do you hope to do this year?
Marcus:This year, I hope to take on two freelance clients on the side. Just to test it.
Priya:And what do you plan to do, concretely, in the next thirty days?
Marcus:I plan to redesign my portfolio site and email three old contacts.
Priya:See what just happened? You moved from 'dream of running' to 'hope to take on' to 'plan to redesign'. Each one got smaller, more specific, more doable.
Marcus:Yeah. And the plan one is the only one I can do tonight.
Priya:Exactly. The dream gives you direction. The plan gives you motion. Most people get stuck because they only ever talk in dreams.
Marcus:I'd also like to do some kind of business course at some point.
Priya:Notice you said 'I'd like to' — that's a softer one. What would have to be true for that to become 'I plan to'?
Marcus:I'd need to actually find one. Pick a date. Probably tell my partner.
Priya:There's your homework.
Question 1.What does Marcus plan to do in the next thirty days?
Question 2.What does Priya say the dream gives versus what the plan gives?
Question 3.What is Priya's purpose when she says 'What would have to be true for that to become I plan to'?
Question 4.What does Marcus imply when he says 'the plan one is the only one I can do tonight'?
Exam tip · Section 7
5 minSpeaking — Cambridge B1 Preliminary Part 4 / IELTS Part 2 (talk about a goal)
Task
Speak for 90 seconds about an ambition. Use AT LEAST one example of: hope to / would like to / plan to / dream of.
Strategy
Examiners reward range. A learner who uses only 'I want to' four times scores below one who layers 'I dream of', 'I hope to', 'I plan to'. Sequence them: dream (the big picture) → hope (this year) → plan (this month). It instantly makes your answer sound structured.
Example
I dream of working in international development one day. More immediately, I hope to do an internship this summer with an NGO. To get there, I plan to apply to three programmes by the end of March, and I'd like to improve my French alongside that.
Practice · Section 8
8–10 minFill in the blank
Question 1.I ___ open my own bakery one day.
Question 2.I ___ improve my French this year.
Question 3.I'd ___ to live by the sea eventually.
Question 4.I ___ you have a great trip.
There isn't one "right" answer — write a natural version, then compare with the model.
Q1.Soft polite ambition to learn Italian — use 'would like to'
Q2.Big long-term ambition to open a café — use 'dream of'
Writing · Section 9
5 minPut it in writing
Your task
Write a 70–90 word paragraph: one dream, one hope for this year, one concrete plan for this month.
Your answer
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Show model answer
I dream of one day working as a freelance translator from somewhere on the Mediterranean. This year I hope to finish my translation certificate and take on a couple of small paid jobs to build a portfolio. More immediately, I plan to spend two hours every Saturday morning on translation practice and email three local agencies by the end of the month to introduce myself.
Speaking · Section 10
10–15 minMake it a real conversation
Coach a partner through their ambitions. Ask: what do you dream of? what do you hope to do this year? what do you plan to do this month? Force them to use the right grammar for each.
Useful phrases
- • What do you dream of doing?
- • What do you hope to do this year?
- • What do you plan to do this month?
- • Would you like to…?
- • What's stopping you?
Speaking reflection & notes
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Homework · Section 11
Take-homeTake it home
Write 'dream / hope / plan' for one area of your life (work, health, learning).
Record a 60-second voice note about an ambition, using all four verbs.
Listen to a podcast interview and note three 'ambition' verbs the guest uses.
Homework notes
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Recap · Section 12
2–3 minWhat you've learned
- hope / would like / plan + to + infinitive.
- dream + of + -ing.
- Sequence dream → hope → plan to sound structured.
- 'I'd like to' is more natural than 'I want to' in polite contexts.