Bullish means feeling confident that something will succeed or improve. When someone is bullish about their soccer team's chances this season, they believe the team will do well. If a student feels bullish about her science fair project, she expects it to turn out great.

The word comes from the stock market, where investors are bullish when they believe stock prices will go up. They think businesses will grow and become more valuable, so they buy stocks expecting to make money. The opposite is bearish, when people expect prices to fall.

You'll often hear people say they're bullish on new technology, a sports team's future, or even a friend's chances of winning an election. The word carries a sense of optimism. Being bullish means you believe good things are coming, based on what you know or have observed. When investors or fans are bullish, they're putting their confidence, and sometimes their money, where their mouth is.