1
as in rather
by choice or preference
I would not willingly eat liver, but sometimes I have no choice
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in voluntarily
of one's own free will
I willingly made the campaign contribution; no one pressured me into doing so
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of willingly
The man willingly moved into the basement 20 years ago, but his health has since deteriorated, per the outlet.
—
Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 25 Jan. 2026
Smith allegedly willingly gave her child to a family member of the potential buyer, and 2½ hours later demanded a $10,000 payment or the return of her child, according to the criminal complaint.
—Kyle Werner, Des Moines Register, 24 Jan. 2026
Or maybe dear ol’ dad made the choice willingly.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 22 Jan. 2026
But how many of them — like our old friend the Snake Oil Salesman — willingly gave all of that up for the chance to expunge their lifetimes of trauma?
—Jack King, Vulture, 21 Jan. 2026
The men leveraged their success and used it to attract women, who, their lawyers insist, participated willingly.
—Sasha Pezenik, ABC News, 20 Jan. 2026
Moua said her brother-in-law went willingly with the officers without knowing why he was being detained.
—Jean Lee, NBC news, 20 Jan. 2026
Who in their right mind would willingly stick around to see what this aggressive person does next?
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 19 Jan. 2026
Zero-party data is information customers intentionally and willingly share, such as their preferences, intentions or feedback.
—Shep Hyken, Forbes.com, 18 Jan. 2026
Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 25 Jan. 2026
Smith allegedly willingly gave her child to a family member of the potential buyer, and 2½ hours later demanded a $10,000 payment or the return of her child, according to the criminal complaint.
—Kyle Werner, Des Moines Register, 24 Jan. 2026
Or maybe dear ol’ dad made the choice willingly.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 22 Jan. 2026
But how many of them — like our old friend the Snake Oil Salesman — willingly gave all of that up for the chance to expunge their lifetimes of trauma?
—Jack King, Vulture, 21 Jan. 2026
The men leveraged their success and used it to attract women, who, their lawyers insist, participated willingly.
—Sasha Pezenik, ABC News, 20 Jan. 2026
Moua said her brother-in-law went willingly with the officers without knowing why he was being detained.
—Jean Lee, NBC news, 20 Jan. 2026
Who in their right mind would willingly stick around to see what this aggressive person does next?
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 19 Jan. 2026
Zero-party data is information customers intentionally and willingly share, such as their preferences, intentions or feedback.
—Shep Hyken, Forbes.com, 18 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for willingly
Adverb
-
Several right-wing social media figures and conservative commentators have also shared the video and suggested that Pretti was not an innocent bystander, but rather someone who was deliberately seeking confrontation.—
Siladitya Ray,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Jordan Brand‘s first basketball sneaker designed specifically for women didn’t come two years ago with the launch of the Heir, but rather way back in 1998 with the Air Jordan OG.—
Ian Servantes,
Footwear News,
29 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
The content creator announced her bombshell move to voluntarily unmask at the end of the episode.—
Zoey Lyttle,
PEOPLE,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Other students arrested over pro-Palestinian protests nationwide have since been released, deported or left the country voluntarily.—
Aarón Torres,
Dallas Morning News,
30 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Place 3 large eggs, beaten to blend, 1½ cups fine dry breadcrumbs, preferably seasoned or Italian-style, and 1 cup all-purpose flour in 3 separate shallow bowls.—
Chris Morocco,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
-
For weeks in this space, the thought — through no fault of their own — was to swap out Powell and Andrew Wiggins for draft capital, to either further fuel the youth pipeline or to amass and then package picks in a trade for a potential leading man (preferably a Greek leading man).—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
24 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
The property features 600 feet of private waterfront—Le Sereno is one of the few hotels that only allows hotel guests to use their beach club—and children will scramble to snorkel with sea turtles, who swim freely in the bay.—
Molly Barstein,
Vogue,
1 Feb. 2026
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Our campaign finance system contains a dangerous loophole created by the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision that allows corporations with substantial foreign ownership to spend freely in federal, state, and local races.—
Michael Gianaris,
New York Daily News,
1 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
When adults normalize reflective conversation alongside predictable routines, boys build internal structure more readily, and with far less conflict.—
Dr. Liz Doe Stone,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
This, in turn, created chemical reactions that generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) – oxygen-containing molecules, such as hydrogen peroxide, that readily react with other substances thanks to unstable electrons.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Willingly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/willingly. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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