willingly

American  

[wil-ing-lee] / ˈwɪl ɪŋ li /

adverb

1. in a consenting and often cheerful way.

   They volunteer for duty on faraway battlefields, willingly putting their lives on the line to fight and possibly die for their country.

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Other Word Forms

• overwillingly adverb
• prewillingly adverb
• quasi-willingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of willingly

First recorded before 900; equivalent to willing ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Example Sentences

McElroy said the men spoke in code, with Grillo referring to the “production” and continually asking the witness what the plan was to convince Duarte to go willingly.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 4, 2026

What’s more, whether they are pushed out or leave willingly, younger employees often go without a clear sense of what went wrong, so they’ll never get better.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026

"We're committed to deterring and finding the bad actors, manipulators, and those who willingly cheat."

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

The challenge, as you point out, is that your relative willingly gave this person power of attorney, and given their deterioration, it will be difficult for them to rescind it.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 24, 2026

Nhamo willingly let go now—if she was within reach of the rock.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

Related Words

• cheerfully
• freely
• readily
• voluntarily