volition

[ voh-lish-uhn, vuh- ]

/ voʊˈlɪʃ ən, və- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR volition ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the act of willing, choosing, or resolving; exercise of willing: She left of her own volition.

a choice or decision made by the will.

the power of willing; will.

Nearby words

volga river, volga tatar, volgograd, volitant, volitation, volition, volitional tremor, volitive, volk, volkmann, volkmann's canal

Origin of volition

1605–15; < Medieval Latin volitiōn- (stem of volitiō), equivalent to vol- (variant stem of velle to want, wish; see will¹) + -itiōn- -ition

SYNONYMS FOR volition

1 discretion, choice. See will².

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR volition ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

vo·li·tion·al, vo·li·tion·ar·y

[voh-lish-uh-ner-ee] /voʊˈlɪʃ əˌnɛr i/, adjectivevo·li·tion·al·ly, adverbnon·vo·li·tion, nounnon·vo·li·tion·al, adjective

pre·vo·li·tion·al, adjectivesu·per·vo·li·tion, nounun·vo·li·tion·al, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for volition

When would those states have integrated of their own volition, because it was the right thing to do?
The Roots of the GOP’s Race Problem|Michael Tomasky|May 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So women, you see, are not human beings with agency and volition about their sexuality in Huckabee Land.
Why Women Do Not Love Mike Huckabee|Michael Tomasky|January 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
No, she said, she had come to pray at the Kotel of her own volition, no one put her up to it.
Talking to Women of the Wall's Ultra-Orthodox Teenage Protesters|Elisheva Goldberg|November 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Normally, dogs and cats and humans seem to be guided by some kind of volition – but of course that may be flattering ourselves.
Roadrunner, Caught at Last|Blake Gopnik|July 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST

But then you have the women who go into the trade of their volition.
A History of Sex in London: City of Lust?|Kevin Canfield|July 26, 2012|DAILY BEAST
We can drift like other animals, and often do; but we can also obey our own volition.
Life and Matter|Oliver Lodge
It was by a strong effort of volition that she prevented herself from fainting.
Fairy Fingers|Anna Cora Mowatt Ritchie
Auxiliary derived from the idea of future destination, dependent upon the volition of the agent—will.
A Handbook of the English Language|Robert Gordon Latham
Of his own volition one night he abruptly changed his sleeping-quarters.
Bred of the Desert|Marcus Horton
And his will, the mighty gift, emblem of the volition of the Giver, approved what He decreed.
The Ordinance of Covenanting|John Cunningham

British Dictionary definitions for volition

volition

/ (vəˈlɪʃən) /

noun

the act of exercising the willof one's own volition

the faculty or capability of conscious choice, decision, and intention; the will

the resulting choice or resolution

philosophy an act of will as distinguished from the physical movement it intends to bring about

Derived Forms

volitional or volitionary, adjectivevolitionally, adverb

Word Origin for volition

C17: from Medieval Latin volitiō, from Latin vol- as in volō I will, present stem of velle to wish

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medicine definitions for volition

volition

[ və-lĭsh′ən ]

n.

The act or an instance of making a conscious choice or decision.

A conscious choice or decision.

The power or faculty of choosing; the will.

Related forms

vo•li′tion•al adj.