goodwill

American  

[good-wil] / ˈgʊdˈwɪl /

Or good will

noun

1. friendly disposition; benevolence; kindness.

   Synonyms:

   friendliness

2. cheerful acquiescence or consent.

3. Commerce. an intangible, saleable asset arising from the reputation of a business and its relations with its customers, distinct from the value of its stock and other tangible assets.

---

goodwill British  

/ ˌɡʊdˈwɪl /

noun

1. a feeling of benevolence, approval, and kindly interest

2. (modifier) resulting from, showing, or designed to show goodwill

   the government sent a goodwill mission to Moscow

   a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF

3. willingness or acquiescence

4. accounting an intangible asset taken into account in assessing the value of an enterprise and reflecting its commercial reputation, customer connections, etc

---

Related Words

See favor.

Etymology

Origin of goodwill

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English gōd willa. See good, will ²

Explanation

Use the noun goodwill just the way it sounds, to describe friendliness or helpfulness. Giving your subway seat to an elderly man is a gesture of goodwill. Goodwill can also be spelled as two separate words, good will, but either way it joins good, from the Old English word for "virtuous," god, and will, in Old English willa, or "wish." So when you wish someone well — when you feel friendly or compassionate — you have goodwill toward that person.

Example Sentences

The decision was framed as a magnanimous act of mercy and was undoubtedly meant to demonstrate goodwill on the part of Havana’s ruling elite.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026

The UAE facilitated the release, the ministry said, adding that the decision was made on humanitarian grounds and as a gesture of "goodwill".

From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026

“Generations of assistant U.S. attorneys had built the goodwill of that office for your generation to destroy it within a year,” Quraishi told a prosecutor.

From Slate • Mar. 24, 2026

There is a lingering loss of goodwill after years of sanctions and trade disputes, he noted, and over time that could “point to a more fragmented geopolitical landscape.”

From MarketWatch • Mar. 17, 2026

Every feeling was offended; and the forbearance of her outward submission left a heavy arrear due of secret severity in her reflections on the unmanageable goodwill of Mr. Weston’s temper.

From "Emma" by Jane Austen