In sha' Allah[a][b], usually called the Istit̲h̲nāʾ,[1] is an Arabic-language expression meaning 'if God wills' or 'God willing'.
[4][5] It signifies that nothing, neither action nor thought, happens without God's permission.
[6] In an Islamic context, it expresses the belief that nothing happens unless God wills it, and that his will supersedes all human will;[7] however, more generally the phrase is commonly used by Muslims, Arab Christians and Arabic speakers of other religions to refer to events that one hopes will happen in the future, having the same meaning as the English word "hopefully".
[7][8] The phrase can take on an ironic context when one dismisses their free will entirely and claims the matter is in God's hands.
For example, when one receives an invitation they have no intention of accepting, they might say "inshallah" as an open-ended response.