- plural of willy.
willies
Americannoun
plural noun
Etymology
Origin of willies
An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900; origin obscure; cf. -s 3
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.
But upon closer interrogation, the whole thing gave me the willies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 14, 2026
The veg sandwich, in which a salty and steroidal oyster mushroom subs for the bird, just gives me the willies.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 5, 2022
Granted, discovering that her superfan collected one of her toenails does give the otherwise unflappable spirit a serious case of the willies.
From Salon ● Dec. 29, 2021
You can easily call it quits if it rains or if someone gets a sudden, intractable case of the willies.
From New York Times ● May 15, 2020
In all honesty, the RV gives Scoob the willies.
From "Clean Getaway" by Nic Stone
Definitions 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.
