free will

American  

noun

1. free and independent choice; voluntary decision.

   You took on the responsibility of your own free will.

2. Philosophy. the doctrine that the conduct of human beings expresses personal choice and is not simply determined by physical or divine forces.

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free will British  

noun

1. 1. the apparent human ability to make choices that are not externally determined

   2. the doctrine that such human freedom of choice is not illusory Compare determinism

   3. ( as modifier )

      a free-will decision

2. the ability to make a choice without coercion

   he left of his own free will: I did not influence him

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free will Cultural  

1. The ability to choose, think, and act voluntarily. For many philosophers, to believe in free will is to believe that human beings can be the authors of their own actions and to reject the idea that human actions are determined by external conditions or fate. (See determinism, fatalism, and predestination.)

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Example Sentences

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From BBC • May 11, 2026

Artie is the type of person who asks people whether they believe in free will and hopes for genuine answers.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

But the terminally dissatisfied Carol would rather stew in her own low-grade depression and angst that forfeit her free will.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 24, 2025

"But if she doesn't, then God says everybody has free will, and so that doesn't cause a problem for me."

From Barron's • Nov. 1, 2025

There was a painful pause when the constable told them she had gone away of her own free will, but it only lasted for a moment.

From "Tuck Everlasting" by Natalie Babbit