willfully
or wil·ful·ly
deliberately or intentionally; on purpose: Any seller who knowingly or willfully certifies false statements is subject to fine and imprisonment.
in an unreasonably stubborn or headstrong way: The student disrupted school activities and willfully defied the authority of teachers, administrators, and other school employees.
Origin of willfully
1Other words from willfully
- half-will·ful·ly, half-wil·ful·ly, adverb
- un·will·ful·ly, un·wil·ful·ly, adverb
Words Nearby willfully
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use willfully in a sentence
It’s easy to unwittingly punish characters for their queerness or promiscuity, rather than dramatize the horrible randomness of an epidemic compounded by the bigotry and willful ignorance of straight society.
HBO Max’s Bold, Witty and Wrenching AIDS Drama It’s a Sin Is the First Must-See Show of 2021 | Judy Berman | February 18, 2021 | TimeIt’s hard not to feel like the forgetting is willful, and willful forgetting only creates more distrust.
How the CIA’s fake vaccine program in Pakistan helped fuel the anti-vax movement | Hala Iqbal | February 1, 2021 | VoxWhere one moment symbolized hunger for the right to a full and free vote—the other was a willful denial of a fair election won in part thanks to grassroots efforts at expanding voter rights.
Why you can’t compare the storming of the US Capitol and Hong Kong’s legislature | Tripti Lahiri | January 7, 2021 | QuartzHunt said he didn’t think TOSHA could have proven that the 2016 and 2019 incidents were similar enough to sustain a willful violation with the information the agency had available.
A Temp Worker Died on the Job After FedEx Didn’t Fix a Known Hazard. The Fine: $7,000. | by Wendi C. Thomas, MLK50: Justice Through Journalism | December 23, 2020 | ProPublicaEven now, his shockingly soulless and willful spreading of misinformation continues as the death toll mounts.
To do so is to deify a celebrity for being what we need them to be, while willfully ignoring who they really are.
Phylicia Rashad and the Cult of Cosby Truthers | Stereo Williams | January 8, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTLast week, just before willfully separating themselves from each other, they told each other, “I love you.”
How Will They End ‘The Affair’? Showtime’s Adultery Drama Defies Predictability | Tim Teeman | December 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAt best, his administration appeared exceptionally lax, and at worst, it willfully obstructed justice.
When she tried to explain to him that he himself could be a carrier, he “willfully ignored what [she] said.”
But anyone who really sees “racism” in the matter is being almost willfully blind to perfectly rational human nature.
But the being who willfully creates pain and evil cannot be benevolent.
The Necessity of Atheism | Dr. D.M. BrooksThus the law holds him guilty who willfully breaks a contract entered into in good faith by all the parties to it.
Black and White | Timothy Thomas FortuneNo taint of false sentiment, of sorrow willfully indulged, marred these memories.
The Book of Susan | Lee Wilson DoddShe looked down into the black abyss from which she had willfully turned away her eyes, and saw that it was fathomless.
The Squirrel-Cage | Dorothy CanfieldBoth the lessons of history and the tendency of the times are willfully and incessantly ignored.
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