wayward

adjective

way·​ward ˈwā-wərd 

1

: following one's own capricious, wanton, or depraved inclinations : ungovernable

a wayward child

2

: following no clear principle or law : unpredictable

3

: opposite to what is desired or expected : untoward

wayward fate

waywardly adverb

waywardness noun

Synonyms

• balky
• contrary
• contumacious
• defiant
• disobedient
• froward
• incompliant
• insubordinate
• intractable
• obstreperous
• rebel
• rebellious
• recalcitrant
• recusant
• refractory
• restive
• ungovernable
• unruly
• untoward
• willful
• wilful

Choose the Right Synonym for wayward

contrary, perverse, restive, balky, wayward mean inclined to resist authority or control.

contrary implies a temperamental unwillingness to accept orders or advice.

a contrary child

perverse may imply wrongheaded, determined, or cranky opposition to what is reasonable or normal.

a perverse, intractable critic

restive suggests unwillingness or inability to submit to discipline or follow orders.

tired soldiers growing restive

balky suggests a refusing to proceed in a desired direction or course of action.

a balky witness

wayward suggests strong-willed capriciousness and irregularity in behavior.

a school for wayward youths

Examples of wayward in a Sentence

parents of a wayward teenager

had always been the most wayward of their three children

Recent Examples on the Web

Flynn stars in the series in the pivotal role of Dickie Greenleaf, a wayward vagabond who is murdered by a grifter, Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott), who assumes Dickie’s identity. —Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 9 June 2025

For a time, this combination of wayward emotional expression and cultural openness, this embrace of other forms of beauty, seemed to embody a new, modern ideal. —Susan Tallman, The Atlantic, 30 May 2025

Our walk was a saunter, a delightful, wayward, exploratory street haunting, to use Virginia Woolf’s term for the adventure and discovery of walking in the city. —Sarah Beckwith, New Yorker, 26 May 2025

Limit any pruning to removing dead wood or truly wayward branches. —Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 24 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, short for awayward turned away, from away, adverb + -ward

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

wayward

adjective

way·​ward ˈwā-wərd 

1

: tending to do as one pleases : disobedient

wayward children

2

: not following a rule or regular course of action

waywardly adverb

waywardness noun