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.

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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

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Synonym Usage

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

See Examples For:

goodwill

The advantage of looking at profit margins is that they exclude some of the one-time events that distort bottom-line numbers, such as goodwill write-downs or restructuring charges.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

To restore goodwill, Bilt said it would deposit 2,500 Bilt rewards points to affected customers for their inconvenience, and offered to work directly with those impacted.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Given his iconic status within French football and on the wider national stage, Zidane will invariably enjoy an unprecedented degree of goodwill regardless of his initial results.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

“I just don’t want us to overplay our hand and kind of lose an atmosphere of goodwill and in the Olympics that could actually ultimately prove to be a longer-term economic benefit,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

In Jackson Park Burnham faced repeated interruptions stemming from his de facto role as ambassador to the outside world, charged with cultivating goodwill and future attendance.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson