goodwill
Americannoun
-
friendly disposition; benevolence; kindness.
- Synonyms:
- friendliness
-
cheerful acquiescence or consent.
-
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.
noun
-
a feeling of benevolence, approval, and kindly interest
-
(modifier) resulting from, showing, or designed to show goodwill
the government sent a goodwill mission to Moscow
a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF
-
willingness or acquiescence
-
accounting an intangible asset taken into account in assessing the value of an enterprise and reflecting its commercial reputation, customer connections, etc
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.
Vocabulary lists containing goodwill
Joy To The Word: Christmas Terms
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Inside Out & Back Again
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Bodega Dreams
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A senior State Department official told reporters on Friday that Rubio was demonstrating US goodwill towards the "deepening partnership across Central Asia", especially in the energy sector.
From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026
He was short, but not short on perseverance, goodwill, clarity and courage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Delyth Jewell, deputy minister for women's health, said the future of endometriosis care cannot be left to "the goodwill" of individual health boards.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
Once the quintessential ’90s heartthrob, Hartnett has parlayed the goodwill from his hunky idol days into something far more compelling.
From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026
Any goodwill he’d earned from her from his interview had long since evaporated, and she was way, way out of his league.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
