willful

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

Also spelled wilful

US /ˈwɪl.fəl/ UK /ˈwɪl.fəl/ See IPA manual

adj

Meanings

1

adj
deliberate and intentional, or stubbornly self-willed

The court found it a case of willful neglect.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · deliberate and intentional,... deliberate intentional obstinate headstrong stubborn wayward perverse

Opposites

accidental unintentional compliant obedient

Word family

Forms wilfulness

Derived forms willfullywillfulness

Related forms will willing

Etymology

From Middle English wilful, from will (the noun) + -ful, from Old English willa ('will, desire'), from Proto-Germanic *wiljô.

willa Old English *wiljô Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# willful

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** ˈwɪl.fəl
**IPA (UK):** ˈwɪl.fəl

## Meanings
1. deliberate and intentional, or stubbornly self-willed

## Examples
- The court found it a case of willful neglect.

## Synonyms
- deliberate
- intentional
- obstinate
- headstrong
- stubborn
- wayward
- perverse

## Antonyms
- accidental
- unintentional
- compliant
- obedient

## Derived Forms
- willfully
- willfulness

## Related Forms
- will
- willing

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: willa
- Root: *wiljô

## Etymology
From Middle English wilful, from will (the noun) + -ful, from Old English willa ('will, desire'), from Proto-Germanic *wiljô.

## AI Etymology
Willful comes from Middle English wilful, from will (the noun) + -ful, from Old English willa ('will, desire'), from Proto-Germanic *wiljô. In current use it is an adjective meaning "deliberate and intentional, or stubbornly self-willed". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The suffix -ful marks possession or fullness of the quality named by the base. The surface form is compositional: its joined elements remain visible in the modern word. The historical chain includes Old English willa and Proto-Germanic *wiljô. Related English forms include will and willing. Derived forms include willfully and willfulness. The word's history is thus visible in its construction: the components remain interpretable even after the whole expression has settled into a conventional English meaning.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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