1
as in bequeaths
to give by means of a will
willed their house to their adult children
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in pleases
to see fit
do as you will—I wash my hands of the whole affair
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in choices
the act or power of making one's own choices or decisions
you cannot force me to do anything against my own will
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of wills
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2025
Michelle Andrews, NPR, 31 Oct. 2025
Launched in 2010 by Bill and Melinda French Gates and Warren Buffett, the Giving Pledge invites the world’s wealthiest individuals and families to publicly commit to giving away at least 50% of their wealth to philanthropy, either during their lifetimes or in their wills.
—Jessica Coacci, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
No amount of refined wordplay or frilly couture can disguise how neatly the women’s war of wills fits into a larger filmography obsessed with the ways everyone madly scrambles for influence and control.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
The potential deals emerging from the wills are a bit of a Rubik’s Cube.
—Footwear News, 21 Oct. 2025
The brain has always been central to the most insightful thinking on warfare, whether that’s ancient China’s Sun Tzu, who prized deception and self-knowledge, or early 19th-century Prussia’s Carl von Clausewitz, for whom war was a clash of wills.
—Big Think, 18 Oct. 2025
Some wilderness therapy programs operate against participants' wills and have been controversial.
—Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 17 Oct. 2025
With tensions rising, the film transforms into an unsettling black comedy as the colleagues descend into a battle of wills and wits.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Oct. 2025
The Mariners beat the Detroit Tigers 3-2 on Friday night at T-Mobile Park, emptying their bullpen, testing their wills and winning a game that stretched deep into the night.
—The Athletic Mlb Staff, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025
Verb
Agnes virtually wills her back to life.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
The debate over whether to extend them again has been at the center of a political battle of wills between Republicans and Democrats in Congress, a fight at the heart of the now month-old government shutdown.
—Michelle Andrews, NPR, 31 Oct. 2025
Launched in 2010 by Bill and Melinda French Gates and Warren Buffett, the Giving Pledge invites the world’s wealthiest individuals and families to publicly commit to giving away at least 50% of their wealth to philanthropy, either during their lifetimes or in their wills.
—Jessica Coacci, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
No amount of refined wordplay or frilly couture can disguise how neatly the women’s war of wills fits into a larger filmography obsessed with the ways everyone madly scrambles for influence and control.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
The potential deals emerging from the wills are a bit of a Rubik’s Cube.
—Footwear News, 21 Oct. 2025
The brain has always been central to the most insightful thinking on warfare, whether that’s ancient China’s Sun Tzu, who prized deception and self-knowledge, or early 19th-century Prussia’s Carl von Clausewitz, for whom war was a clash of wills.
—Big Think, 18 Oct. 2025
Some wilderness therapy programs operate against participants' wills and have been controversial.
—Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 17 Oct. 2025
With tensions rising, the film transforms into an unsettling black comedy as the colleagues descend into a battle of wills and wits.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Oct. 2025
The Mariners beat the Detroit Tigers 3-2 on Friday night at T-Mobile Park, emptying their bullpen, testing their wills and winning a game that stretched deep into the night.
—The Athletic Mlb Staff, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wills
Verb
-
Igor scans the workbench, ultimately choosing a box of candies and mints, a delightfully absurd solution that still pleases his master.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Our project, after the rule and collapse of the Hamas-ISIS government, is to secure the people and move them through the transitional phase … to civilian institutions that govern in a way that pleases God, far from their personal interests.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Those policy choices have contributed to declining aquifers and greater vulnerability when rainfall is insufficient.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
-
People are acting entirely too entitled to information about each other's private reproductive choices.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
10 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Back in 1962, Lilly leaves Juniper Hill with a higher dose of medication, which seems like the best-case scenario given the threat of lobotomy in the show’s opening titles.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
10 Nov. 2025
-
The key is to fold the scarf over itself to create volume and to look for a lace trim that leaves the hem frayed, so as not to look too formal.—
Arancha Gamo,
Glamour,
9 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
In that scenario, the school doesn’t claim the coach engaged in any wrongdoing but instead simply wishes to replace the coach.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
11 Nov. 2025
-
Thank you for all of the birthday wishes.—
Georgia Slater,
PEOPLE,
11 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Everybody wants to have a play and that’s a positive thing.—
Diana Lodderhose,
Deadline,
7 Nov. 2025
-
According to court documents, the Marathon County Sheriff's Office notifies ICE of every person booked into the jail who was not born in the United States, and asks if the agency wants a detainer.—
Laura Schulte,
jsonline.com,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Wills.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wills. Accessed 15 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share