Yes it is an adverb, now much more commonly used to denote "if all goes well" rather than "in a hopeful manner". It was written in its usual manner to qualify the whole sentence i.e. hoping someone would attempt the quiz (your latter meaning). Even writing it thus, "someone will hopefully have a stab" or "someone will have a stab hopefully" would more usually be taken to imply your latter meaning rather than your former meaning. Your other suggested meaning could have been written thus, "someone will have a hopeful stab" but this would be unusual. The word hopefully is now rarely used in the former meaning as you have described as its use will almost always convey the more common meaning that I have just described i.e. it's used in a similar manner to words like "ideally" or "probably" etc. It's normally a fairly obvious distinction!
Adrian
> from: John PASKINS <[log in to unmask]>
> date: Wed, 18 Sep 2002 10:04:00
> to: [log in to unmask]
> subject: Re: radiologists compromise timely emergency care[Scanned]
>
> Hopefully is an adverb is it not? Did you mean that someone would sort of
> generally stab about at something in a hopeful way or that you hoped someone
> would have a stab?
>
> JP
>
> >>> Adrian Fogarty 09/17/02 12:43pm >>>
> No your wording was perfect Cliff! Haven't time right now myself, but
> hopefully someone will have a stab at this conundrum before the day's out.
> (Maybe Rowley's order is correct but he hasn't explained the imaging
> priorities.)
>
> Adrian
>
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