as in restraint
the power to control one's actions, impulses, or emotions
trying to summon the willpower to resist buying any more books before finishing the unread ones I already have
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Recent Examples of willpower
Yet society still frames obesity as a failure of willpower—a harmful misconception that fuels stigma and misleads approaches to care and policy.
—
Francesco Rubino, Time, 9 July 2025
Since change is often framed as a challenge of willpower or attitude, leaders are taught to anticipate resistance and to respond to it effectively.
—Inga Bielińska, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
This exorbitant fee was avoidable — except the voters, unlike politicians, have little tenacity and willpower to fight the good fight.
—U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 July 2025
While not tested on humans, the findings nonetheless demonstrate that there appears to be more to yo-yo dieting behavior and why restriction often leads to excess – and weight gain – than willpower.
—New Atlas, 1 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for willpower
Francesco Rubino, Time, 9 July 2025
Since change is often framed as a challenge of willpower or attitude, leaders are taught to anticipate resistance and to respond to it effectively.
—Inga Bielińska, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
This exorbitant fee was avoidable — except the voters, unlike politicians, have little tenacity and willpower to fight the good fight.
—U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 July 2025
While not tested on humans, the findings nonetheless demonstrate that there appears to be more to yo-yo dieting behavior and why restriction often leads to excess – and weight gain – than willpower.
—New Atlas, 1 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for willpower
Recent Examples of Synonyms for willpower
Noun
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In the second photo, the animals are freed of their restraints — one of the pets is crawling about the bin while the other stays in its shell.—
Colson Thayer,
People.com,
24 July 2025
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Unlike the Washington consensus, which mandated fiscal austerity and economic restraint, Silicon Valley’s calls for unprecedented investment and acceleration.—
Arafat Kabir,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
Noun
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The Four Virtues In Business And Work For the Stoics, there were four cardinal virtues that arose from self-control: courage, wisdom, temperance and justice.—
Anna Jankowska,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
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The goal is to help with decision-making and self-control, and to help calm the nervous system.—
Pooja Shree Chettiar,
The Conversation,
10 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Willpower.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/willpower. Accessed 2 Aug. 2025.
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