willies

[ wil-eez ]

/ ˈwɪl iz /

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.

Nearby words

williams, tennessee, williamsburg, williamson, williamsport, willie, willies, willimantic, willing, willing horse, willingdon, willingham

Origin of willies

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

Definition for willies (2 of 3)

Willie

[ wil-ee ]

/ ˈwɪl i /

noun

a male given name, form of William.

a female given name.

Definition for willies (3 of 3)

willy

or wil·ley

[ wil-ee ]

/ ˈwɪl i /

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

The little fellows had seen this, and Willies idea was to circle around through the woods and find that 178 stream.
Ruth Fielding At Sunrise Farm|Alice B. Emerson
Will it give me the willies if I kiss a cocktail good-bye before I start for that fresh guy, Mulqueen?
The Danger Mark|Robert W. Chambers
It is necessary here, perhaps, to explain why we always call our machines "Willies."
Life in a Tank|Richard Haigh
It almost gave him the “Willies”, their remote, peculiar sky-glow, as if afar–afar–they were seeing things.
Pemrose Lorry, Camp Fire Girl|Isabel Katherine Hornibrook

A guy like me, which has got a real expressive face, could get the willies just looking at them.
Hoiman and the Solar Circuit|Gordon Dewey

British Dictionary definitions for willies (1 of 2)

willies

/ (ˈwɪlɪz) /

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

British Dictionary definitions for willies (2 of 2)

willy

/ (ˈwɪlɪ) /

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

Idioms and Phrases with willies

willies

see under the creeps.