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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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

But there could be pressure to share ultimately “not from goodwill but from litigation risk,” he added.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 17, 2026

CarMax recorded a $141.3 million goodwill impairment charge during the fiscal fourth quarter, driven by its falling stock price and weak financial performance.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

Sharif also asked Iran's leaders to "open Strait of Hormuz for a corresponding period of two weeks as a goodwill gesture".

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

These gestures engender goodwill because music lovers have “an expectation of fairness” when buying concert tickets, said Pascal Courty, an economics professor at the University of Victoria.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

She did not deserve the goodwill of her class.

From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord