N4Grammar

様(よう)に祈(いの)る

Pray that/for, Hope that/for, Keep fingers crossed that

Structure

Verb［る］ + ように + 祈(いの)る
Verb［ない］ + ように + 祈(いの)る

Explanation

The auxiliary verb ようだ often appears with other verbs to indicate that the realization of an action or state is the speaker's main desire. This function stems from the inherent meaning of the kanji 様(よう), which signifies a 'state' or 'way of being'.

Following this pattern, ようにいのる (written with kanji as 祈(いの)る) signifies that the speaker is wishing for (A) to come true. The う-Verb 祈(いの)る literally means 'to pray' or 'to wish for'. While it can be used for actual prayer, this grammar structure is most commonly used in everyday situations to simply express a strong 'hope'.

赤(あか)ちゃんが元気(げんき)に生(う)まれるように祈(いの)る。
I'm hoping that the baby is born healthy and strong.
みんなが幸(しあわ)せに暮(く)らせるように祈(いの)る。
I hope that everyone can live happily.

Just like other grammar forms using ように, the negative ない-form can be attached to 祈(いの)る. This expresses a hope that something will 'not' take place.

財布(さいふ)を忘(わす)れないように祈(いの)る。
I hope that I don't forget my wallet.
このホラー映画(えいが)が怖(こわ)すぎないように祈(いの)る。
I pray this horror movie isn't too scary.

Caution

A unique feature of this grammar is that ように祈(いの)る can be abbreviated to just ように. This is particularly common when the preceding verb is in the polite ます-form.

お母(かあ)さんの病気(びょうき)が早(はや)く治(なお)りますように。
I pray that your mother gets well soon.
宝(たから)くじが当(あ)たりますように。
I hope that I win the lottery.

This omission of the final verb is exclusive to this grammar pattern. Because of this, when ように appears alone at the end of a sentence, it always carries the meaning of 'I hope...' and must be distinguished from related structures like ようにする, ようになる, or ようにいう.

Fun Fact

The phrase といい is another common way to express a hope or wish for (A). Unlike ように祈(いの)る, the subject of the wish is often clarified by the final particle: ね is used when wishing something for another person, while な is used when wishing for oneself.

旅行(りょこう)が楽(たの)しめるといいね。
I hope you enjoy your trip. (Hope for your sake)
いつか猫(ねこ)が飼(か)えるといいな。
I hope I can get a cat someday. (Hope for my own sake)

Examples

明日(あした)の試合(しあい)に勝(か)てるように祈(いの)っているんだ。

I'm praying that I can win tomorrow's match.

おじいちゃんが早(は)く元気(げんき)になるように祈(いの)ろう！

Let's pray that Grandpa gets better soon!

プレゼンが成功(せいこう)するように祈(いの)って(ください)ね。

Please pray that my presentation is a success.

この大事(だいじ)なファイルが消(き)えないように祈(いの)っている。

I'm praying that this important file doesn't get deleted.

うちの子(こ)が風邪(かぜ)をひかないように祈(いの)っているわ。

I'm praying that my child doesn't catch a cold.

これ以上(いじょう)の問題(もんだい)が起(お)きないように祈(いの)りましょう。

Let's pray that no more problems arise.

先生(せんせい)にこのことがバレないように祈(いの)っているんだ。

I'm praying that the teacher doesn't find out about this.

世界(せかい)が平和(へいわ)になるように(祈(いの)る)。

I pray for world peace.

英語(えいご)がペラペラになれるように毎日(まいにち)祈(いの)っているんですよ。

I pray every day that I can become fluent in English.

セーブし忘(わす)れたの？データが残(のこ)っているように祈(いの)ったほうがいいぞ！

You forgot to save? You had better pray that your data is still there!

あんなに山田(やまだ)さんと一緒(いっしょ)のチームにならないように祈(いの)ったのに。

Even though I prayed so hard not to be on the same team as Yamada-san...

お(O)母(かあ)さん：「ケンちゃんは何(なに)をお願(ねが)いしているの？」
ケンちゃん：「スーパーヒーローになれるように祈(いの)っているのだ！」

Mother: 'What are you wishing for, Ken-chan?'
Ken-chan: 'I'm praying that I can become a superhero!'