volunteer

1 of 3

noun

vol·​un·​teer ˌvä-lən-ˈtir 

1

: a person who voluntarily undertakes or expresses a willingness to undertake a service: such as

a

: one who enters into military service voluntarily

b(1)

: one who renders a service or takes part in a transaction while having no legal concern or interest

(2)

: one who receives a conveyance or transfer of property without giving valuable consideration

2

: a volunteer plant

3

capitalized [Volunteers of America] : a member of a quasi-military religious and philanthropic organization founded in 1896 by Commander and Mrs. Ballington Booth

volunteer

2 of 3

verb

volunteered; volunteering; volunteers

intransitive verb

: to offer oneself as a volunteer

volunteered to host the meeting

transitive verb

: to offer or bestow voluntarily

volunteer one's services

volunteer

3 of 3

adjective

1

: being, consisting of, or engaged in by volunteers

a volunteer army

busy with volunteer activities

2

: growing spontaneously without direct human control or supervision especially from seeds lost from a previous crop

volunteer corn plants

Synonyms

Verb

• bestow
• contribute
• donate
• give
• give away
• present

Adjective

• freewill
• self-imposed
• uncoerced
• unforced
• volitional
• voluntary
• willing

Examples of volunteer in a Sentence

Noun

Volunteers are needed to help with the bake sale.

The school was built by volunteers.

Verb

Our son volunteered for military service.

He would not volunteer any information about her whereabouts.

Adjective

volunteer work at the hospital

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Through our programming, our volunteers— theater-makers from all over New York City and the country—have engaged in acts of service under our banner. —Jeryl Brunner, Forbes.com, 12 June 2025

There’s also a new lobby space to welcome patrons and improved workspaces for staff and volunteers. —Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 12 June 2025

Verb

Three captains have volunteered so far in Escondido, Encinitas and downtown San Diego. —Noah Lyons, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 June 2025

She’s volunteered at White Pony for the last nine years, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. —Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2025

Adjective

Within the past couple of years, the group has become a part of Arrowhead Kingdom, an all-volunteer national network of Chiefs fan groups. —Hannah Kirby, Journal Sentinel, 8 Feb. 2023

That’s noteworthy for a show based at a high-school auditorium in Litchfield and run by a staff that is almost entirely volunteer, including the show’s star and its producer. —Susan Dunne, Hartford Courant, 18 Aug. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Noun

obsolete French voluntaire (now volontaire), from voluntaire, adjective, voluntary, from Old French, from Latin voluntarius

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1709, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Adjective

1649, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for volunteer

• auctioneer
• bandelier
• belvedere
• bombardier
• brigadier
• buccaneer
• cavalier
• chandelier
• chanticleer
• chevalier
• commandeer
• disappear

Kids Definition

volunteer

1 of 3 noun

vol·​un·​teer ˌväl-ən-ˈti(ə)r 

: a person who volunteers for a service

volunteer

2 of 3 adjective

: being, consisting of, or engaged in by volunteers

a volunteer fire department

volunteer activities

volunteer

3 of 3 verb

1

: to offer voluntarily

volunteered my services

2

: to offer oneself as a volunteer

volunteered to do the job

Legal Definition

volunteer

noun

vol·​un·​teer ˌvä-lən-ˈtir 

1

: one that voluntarily undertakes something

especially : one who without request, obligation, or an interest pays the debt of another and is denied reimbursement from subrogation

2

: one who receives property without giving valuable consideration