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definitions

willies

[wil-eez]
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR willies ON THESAURUS.COM

noun (used with a plural verb) Informal.

nervousness or fright; jitters; creeps (usually preceded by the): That horror movie gave me the willies.

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RELATED WORDS

anxiety, tension, stress, impatience, agitation, sensitivity, disquiet, jitters, uneasiness, anger, turbulence, worry, nervousness, restlessness, apprehension, foreboding, uncertainty, mistrust, misgiving, angst

Origin of willies

1895–1900, Americanism; origin obscure; cf. -s3

Willie

[wil-ee]

noun

a male given name, form of William.
a female given name.

willy

or wil·ley

[wil-ee]

noun, plural wil·lies.

willow(def 4).

verb (used with object), wil·lied, wil·ly·ing.

to willow (cotton).

Origin of willy

1825–35; special use of dial. willy, Old English wilige basket (orig. one made of willow twigs); akin to willow
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for willies

Historical Examples of willies

  • The "Willies" themselves had had the best of care and attention.

    Life in a Tank

    Richard Haigh

  • If I'm in for having a trained nurse do it for me, it'll give me the Willies.

    T. Tembarom

    Frances Hodgson Burnett

  • They give me the jimjams, the willies, and I want to get away.

    A Yankee in the Far East

    George Hoyt Allen

  • It was not Willies knock, she knew, but it might be news of Willie.

  • He is quite good at the Willies,24 and so I think we have got a fair chance.

    Sixty Squadron R.A.F.

    Group-Captain A. J. L. Scott

British Dictionary definitions for willies

willies

pl n

the willies slang nervousness, jitters, or fright (esp in the phrase give (or get) the willies)

Word Origin for willies

C20: of unknown origin

willy

noun

British informal a childish or jocular term for penis
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
Word Origin and History for willies
n.

1896, "spell of nervousness," perhaps from the woollies, a dialectal term for "nervous uneasiness," probably in reference to the itchiness of wool garments.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with willies

willies

see under the creeps.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.