willingly

American  

[wil-ing-lee] / ˈwɪl ɪŋ li /

adverb

1. in a consenting and often cheerful way.

   They volunteer for duty on faraway battlefields, willingly putting their lives on the line to fight and possibly die for their country.

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Other Word Forms

• overwillingly
  adverb
• prewillingly
  adverb
• quasi-willingly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of willingly

First recorded before 900; equivalent to willing ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Explanation

If you do something willingly, you're perfectly happy to do it. Invite your friends to join you for hot fudge sundaes, your treat, and they'll willingly come along. When a person acts willingly, they are doing something of their own free will — in other words, they're glad to do it. Sometimes it's a no-brainer: you'll willingly jump in your aunt's waiting car when she offers to drive you home from school on a rainy day. At other times, doing something willingly is a marker of your good nature, like when you willingly step in to help your friend move.

Example Sentences

I assume he will not go willingly, given that he feels like he has a right to live there and has nowhere else to go.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 30, 2026

"For anyone to not see the connection and absurdity, they must be willingly blind."

From BBC • Jun. 12, 2026

But if past is prologue, the courts won’t willingly implement reform.

From Slate • Jun. 8, 2026

“Plaintiff willingly, voluntarily, and knowingly assumed each, every, and all the risks and hazards involved in the activities referred to,” the filing said.

From Los Angeles Times • May 7, 2026

He’d follow me only too willingly, but I’d be taking him to his death; he was too little for this crazy plan, and for that same reason I couldn’t risk saying goodbye, either.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo

Related Words

• cheerfully
• freely
• readily
• voluntarily