willing
Americanadjective
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disposed or consenting; inclined.
willing to go along.
- Synonyms:
- minded
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cheerfully consenting or ready.
a willing worker.
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done, given, borne, used, etc., with cheerful readiness.
adjective
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favourably disposed or inclined; ready
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cheerfully or eagerly compliant
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done, given, accepted, etc, freely or voluntarily
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of willing
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English; see will 2, -ing 2
Explanation
If you're willing to do something, you're agreeable or ready. A willing participant in your play is someone who won't have to be coerced into taking part, but is happy to join you on stage. Imagine that your neighbor asks whether you're willing to feed her cat while she's out of town. If you're open to helping her, perhaps even enthusiastic about spending time with a friendly cat, you're willing. Someone who's not willing would have to be persuaded or forced to do it. You can also use this adjective to mean "readily or enthusiastically done," as in the willing support you offer your best friend when she runs for class president.
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.
City had opened talks with Liverpool over a deal for the Netherlands international, with the Reds willing to sell Gakpo provided they could sign a replacement.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
‘If I’m an analyst and I have a buy recommendation the company’s CFO is willing to talk to me, and if I’ve got a sell recommendation the CFO won’t return my phone calls.’
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
"I thought, well, which limb am I willing to lose? I'm right-handed, so I decided let's do a left hook," she recounted.
From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026
In metal nitrides, however, the bonds are so strong that the ions are far less willing to rearrange.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 30, 2026
A beat of silence goes by while we both stare at my phone, willing it to ring.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
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.
