Wilful
adjective
Intentionally doing something, especially something wrong or harmful.
He expressed his anger towards her wilful disregard of the rules
Often appears as...
- wilful neglect
- wilful misconduct
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
adjective
Stubborn and determined to do what you want, even if it is wrong or unreasonable.
She was a wilful child, often argued with her parents
Often appears as...
- wilful child
- wilful disobedience
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
adjective
Making a conscious and intentional decision to commit an illegal act.
He was charged with wilful murder
Often appears as...
- wilful murder
- wilful damage
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Technical
adjective
Intentionally doing something, especially something wrong or harmful.
He expressed his anger towards her wilful disregard of the rules
Often appears as...
- wilful neglect
- wilful misconduct
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
adjective
Stubborn and determined to do what you want, even if it is wrong or unreasonable.
She was a wilful child, often argued with her parents
Often appears as...
- wilful child
- wilful disobedience
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
adjective
Making a conscious and intentional decision to commit an illegal act.
He was charged with wilful murder
Often appears as...
- wilful murder
- wilful damage
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Technical
Definition 1 of 3
Pro Tip 1/3Negative Connotation
Using 'wilful' suggests a negative judgment about someone's actions being intentional, often related to wrongdoings.
The jury found him guilty of wilful misconduct.
Pro Tip 2/3Legal Implications
In legal contexts, 'wilful' implies that an act was done with intention and can affect the severity of punishment.
The wilful destruction of property is a serious offense.
Pro Tip 3/3Emotional Impact
When someone's actions are described as 'wilful', it often triggers emotions like frustration or disapproval in others.
His wilful ignorance of the issue infuriated the committee.
Pro Tip 1/3Negative Connotation
Using 'wilful' suggests a negative judgment about someone's actions being intentional, often related to wrongdoings.
The jury found him guilty of wilful misconduct.
Pro Tip 2/3Legal Implications
In legal contexts, 'wilful' implies that an act was done with intention and can affect the severity of punishment.
The wilful destruction of property is a serious offense.
Pro Tip 3/3Emotional Impact
When someone's actions are described as 'wilful', it often triggers emotions like frustration or disapproval in others.
His wilful ignorance of the issue infuriated the committee.
Pro Tip 1/3Negative Connotation
Using 'wilful' suggests a negative judgment about someone's actions being intentional, often related to wrongdoings.
The jury found him guilty of wilful misconduct.
Pro Tip 2/3Legal Implications
In legal contexts, 'wilful' implies that an act was done with intention and can affect the severity of punishment.
The wilful destruction of property is a serious offense.
Pro Tip 3/3Emotional Impact
When someone's actions are described as 'wilful', it often triggers emotions like frustration or disapproval in others.
His wilful ignorance of the issue infuriated the committee.
Compare with
deliberateheadstrongintentionalintractableobstinatepurposefulstubbornvoluntary
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Video examples
What it's like to be a...
that I would be prevented from doing anything in my life because I'm a woman. OK. So I graduate. And I start auditioning and I get work, slowly. But I just start noticing that the parts available for women are terrible. But, remember -- I came here to play smart, willful, complicated, interesting
Video examples
Why should you read...
and shows the ripple effect of Hamlet’s toxic mind games. Similar warning signs of tragedy are constantly overlooked throughout the play. Sometimes, these oversights occur because of willful blindness– such as when Ophelia’s father dismisses Hamlet’s alarming actions as mere lovesickness.
Video examples
How risk-taking changes...
So it's the combination of the immature teen brain and the impact of habituation that is like a perfect storm to create more damaging effects. And this research can help parents and the general public understand that teens aren't just willfully ignoring warnings
Video examples
Dare to disagree PIPE...
and a thinking society. The fact is that most of the biggest catastrophes that we've witnessed rarely come from information that is secret or hidden. It comes from information that is freely available and out there, but that we are willfully blind to,
Video examples
Susan Etlinger: What do...
and our family because it helped us change our frame of reference for what was going on with him, and worry a little bit less and appreciate his resourcefulness more. Facts are stupid things. And they're vulnerable to misuse, willful or otherwise.
Video examples
The story of a parent's...
from the best bagel place on Long Island. My father lived this life he didn't want to live, but he lived it so that I could have a dad. I stopped wondering if my dad had ever existed. He had existed -- willfully, consciously, intentionally --
Video examples
See the Wild Dog That...
vermin and is suffering from habitat loss and diseases brought by domestic dogs sorry domesticated domestic means not foreign vetted or willful fix this later only now are we coming to understand their intelligence and intriguing lifestyles
Video examples
Eric Liu: Why ordinary...
We become demotivated to learn more about how things work. We begin to opt out. Well, this problem, this challenge, is a thing that we must now confront, and I believe that when you have this kind of disengagement, this willful ignorance,
Video examples
Climate justice can't...
We need a way to apply international criminal laws, like war crimes or crimes against humanity, to the planet. We need a new international law of ecocide to criminalize the willful and widespread destruction of the environment,
Video examples
Margaret Heffernan: The...
We're all, under certain circumstances, willfully blind. What the research shows is that some people are blind out of fear. They're afraid of retaliation. And some people are blind because they think, well,
Video examples
What it's like to be a...
that I would be prevented from doing anything in my life because I'm a woman. OK. So I graduate. And I start auditioning and I get work, slowly. But I just start noticing that the parts available for women are terrible. But, remember -- I came here to play smart, willful, complicated, interesting
Video examples
Why should you read...
and shows the ripple effect of Hamlet’s toxic mind games. Similar warning signs of tragedy are constantly overlooked throughout the play. Sometimes, these oversights occur because of willful blindness– such as when Ophelia’s father dismisses Hamlet’s alarming actions as mere lovesickness.
Video examples
How risk-taking changes...
So it's the combination of the immature teen brain and the impact of habituation that is like a perfect storm to create more damaging effects. And this research can help parents and the general public understand that teens aren't just willfully ignoring warnings
Video examples
Dare to disagree PIPE...
and a thinking society. The fact is that most of the biggest catastrophes that we've witnessed rarely come from information that is secret or hidden. It comes from information that is freely available and out there, but that we are willfully blind to,
Video examples
Susan Etlinger: What do...
and our family because it helped us change our frame of reference for what was going on with him, and worry a little bit less and appreciate his resourcefulness more. Facts are stupid things. And they're vulnerable to misuse, willful or otherwise.
Video examples
The story of a parent's...
from the best bagel place on Long Island. My father lived this life he didn't want to live, but he lived it so that I could have a dad. I stopped wondering if my dad had ever existed. He had existed -- willfully, consciously, intentionally --
Video examples
See the Wild Dog That...
vermin and is suffering from habitat loss and diseases brought by domestic dogs sorry domesticated domestic means not foreign vetted or willful fix this later only now are we coming to understand their intelligence and intriguing lifestyles
Video examples
Eric Liu: Why ordinary...
We become demotivated to learn more about how things work. We begin to opt out. Well, this problem, this challenge, is a thing that we must now confront, and I believe that when you have this kind of disengagement, this willful ignorance,
Video examples
Climate justice can't...
We need a way to apply international criminal laws, like war crimes or crimes against humanity, to the planet. We need a new international law of ecocide to criminalize the willful and widespread destruction of the environment,
Video examples
Margaret Heffernan: The...
We're all, under certain circumstances, willfully blind. What the research shows is that some people are blind out of fear. They're afraid of retaliation. And some people are blind because they think, well,
Example 1 of 10
Quote examples
Brian Sutton-Smith
American Psychologist
A weakness of many of the self-oriented play theories is that they often sound too much like vain consumerism instead of being about the more passionate and willful character of human play, which involves a willingness, even if a fantasy, to believe in the play venture itself.
Quote examples
Marshall Goldsmith
American Coach
When we prolong negative behavior - the kind that hurts the people we love or the kind that hurts us in some way - we are leading a changeless life in the most hazardous manner. We are willfully choosing to be miserable and making others miserable, too.
Quote examples
Kobe Bryant
American Basketball Player
I'm extremely willful to win, and I respond to challenges. Scoring titles and stuff like that... it sounds, well, I don't care how it sounds - to me, scoring comes easy. It's not a challenge to me to win the scoring title, because I know I can.
Quote examples
Margaret Heffernan
American Businesswoman
The biggest catastrophes that we've witnessed rarely come from information that is secret or hidden. It comes from information that is freely available and out there, but that we are willfully blind to.
Quote examples
John Kennedy
American Lawyer
What I think we need to do is pass a bill that says number one, you own your data. Number two, you can license it to Facebook but the licensing has to be knowing, it has to be willful.
Quote examples
Isaac Newton
English Mathematician
All variety of created objects which represent order and life in the universe could happen only by the willful reasoning of its original Creator, whom I call the 'Lord God.
Quote examples
Corey Stoll
American Actor
In this new world where art is willfully misinterpreted to score points and to distract, simply doing the work of an artist has become a political act.
Quote examples
Amanda Seales
American Comedian
To act like everyone has had the same access to share their funny is willful ignorance at its best - and just a good ol' fashioned front at its truth.
Quote examples
John Lloyd Young
American Actor
Something in me was instinctively drawn to the life of a misunderstood, brilliant and wilful artist. I wanted to become one.
Quote examples
Johnny Marr
English Musician
I seem to attract and be attracted to very willful, fascinating people.
Quote examples
Brian Sutton-Smith
American Psychologist
A weakness of many of the self-oriented play theories is that they often sound too much like vain consumerism instead of being about the more passionate and willful character of human play, which involves a willingness, even if a fantasy, to believe in the play venture itself.
Quote examples
Marshall Goldsmith
American Coach
When we prolong negative behavior - the kind that hurts the people we love or the kind that hurts us in some way - we are leading a changeless life in the most hazardous manner. We are willfully choosing to be miserable and making others miserable, too.
Quote examples
Kobe Bryant
American Basketball Player
I'm extremely willful to win, and I respond to challenges. Scoring titles and stuff like that... it sounds, well, I don't care how it sounds - to me, scoring comes easy. It's not a challenge to me to win the scoring title, because I know I can.
Quote examples
Margaret Heffernan
American Businesswoman
The biggest catastrophes that we've witnessed rarely come from information that is secret or hidden. It comes from information that is freely available and out there, but that we are willfully blind to.
Quote examples
John Kennedy
American Lawyer
What I think we need to do is pass a bill that says number one, you own your data. Number two, you can license it to Facebook but the licensing has to be knowing, it has to be willful.
Quote examples
Isaac Newton
English Mathematician
All variety of created objects which represent order and life in the universe could happen only by the willful reasoning of its original Creator, whom I call the 'Lord God.
Quote examples
Corey Stoll
American Actor
In this new world where art is willfully misinterpreted to score points and to distract, simply doing the work of an artist has become a political act.
Quote examples
Amanda Seales
American Comedian
To act like everyone has had the same access to share their funny is willful ignorance at its best - and just a good ol' fashioned front at its truth.
Quote examples
John Lloyd Young
American Actor
Something in me was instinctively drawn to the life of a misunderstood, brilliant and wilful artist. I wanted to become one.
Quote examples
Johnny Marr
English Musician
I seem to attract and be attracted to very willful, fascinating people.
Example 1 of 10
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