I've learned that both of these can be used to mean “I hope that...” or “I
wish that...” but what is the difference in meaning?

> 「明日晴れといいな。」vs 「明日晴れように。」

Do these have the same meaning?
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2019-05-16T04:08:47.013
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2019-05-16T12:41:59.837
2019-05-16T07:20:56.603
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question
word-choice word-usage
Difference between 〜といい and 〜ように for “I hope...”
The first phrase translates literally as "if tomorrow is clear, (I think) that
will be good."

The second phrase is a sort of ambiguous shortening of ～ように願｛ねが｝っています, "I am
hoping for ~" or similar ending.

Similar to a lot of Japanese phrasings, when you are talking about yourself
(or implying) then emphasis is on a much more personal, closely held
belief/feeling/want. However the first is simply stating a logical fact that
is probably shared by many people.

I think in this case the first one would be more appropriate in a casual, "I
simply want the weather tomorrow to be nice for us all". But if there's
something personaly important that is dependent on the weather tomorrow (eg. a
sports game, a vacation), the second phrasing might be more appropriately
emotional.
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2019-05-16T04:50:40.243
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2019-05-16T04:50:40.243
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answer
Yes, both are used to express wishes and hopes, but the difference is that, if
you say 「～といいな。」, you are merely expressing your hope/wish whereas when you
say 「～ますように」 you are, at bottom, also appealing to a higher being. That is,
expressions of the form 「～ますように。」 are prayers.

Which is not to say that only religious people say things like「明日晴れますように。」.
Non-religious people do say things like 「明日晴れますように。」 in much the same way they
say 「明日晴れるといいな。」(though probably less frequently than they say the other), as
a matter of idiomatic expression.

Naturally, all prayers are also expressions of wishes but not all expressions
of wishes are prayers. One example of the contexts where the difference is
marked would be when you visit (often more out of social necessity than
religious passion) a Shinto shrine and make a wish. What you utter or mutter
(internally, in most cases), for instance, would be 「世界が平和になりますように。」 rather
than 「世界が平和になるといいな。」
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2019-05-16T12:41:59.837
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answer