voluntary
English
Etymology
From Middle English *voluntarie, from Old French volontaire, from Latin voluntārius (“willing, of free will”), from voluntās (“will, choice, desire”), from volēns, present participle of volo (“to will”).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈvɒ.lən.tɹi/
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈvɑ.lənˌtɛ.ɹi/
audio (US) (file)
Adjective
voluntary (comparative more voluntary, superlative most voluntary)
- Done, given, or acting of one's own free will.
- N. W. Taylor
- That sin or guilt pertains exclusively to voluntary action is the true principle of orthodoxy.
- Alexander Pope
- She fell to lust a voluntary prey.
- N. W. Taylor
- Done by design or intention; intentional.
- If a man accidentally kills another by lopping a tree, it is not voluntary manslaughter.
- Working or done without payment.
- Endowed with the power of willing.
- 1594, Hooker, Richard, “Book 1”, in Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, London: John Walthoe et al, published 1782, page 5:
- […] God did not work as a necessary, but a voluntary agent, intending before-hand, and decreeing with himself, that which did outwardly proceed from him.
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- Of or relating to voluntarism.
- a voluntary church, in distinction from an established or state church
Synonyms
- (acting of one's own free will): discretionary, optional, volitional; See also Thesaurus:optional
- (done by design or intention): intentional, willful
- (done without payment): honorary, pro bono, unpaid, unsalaried, unwaged
- (endowed with the power of willing): autonomous, spontaneous
Antonyms
- (all): involuntary
- (acting of one's own free will): compulsory, obligatory; See also Thesaurus:compulsory
- (done by design or intention): accidental
- (done without payment): paid, salaried
Related terms
▼ <a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs14 CategoryTreeLabelCategory' href='/wiki/Category:English_terms_derived_from_the_PIE_root_*welh%E2%82%81-' title='Category:English terms derived from the PIE root *welh₁-'>English terms derived from the PIE root *welh₁-</a> (0 c, 10 e)
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/benevolence' title='benevolence'>benevolence</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/benevolent' title='benevolent'>benevolent</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/malevolence' title='malevolence'>malevolence</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/malevolent' title='malevolent'>malevolent</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/volition' title='volition'>volition</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/voluntary' title='voluntary'>voluntary</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/volunteer' title='volunteer'>volunteer</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/voluptuary' title='voluptuary'>voluptuary</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/voluptuous' title='voluptuous'>voluptuous</a>
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs0 CategoryTreeLabelPage' href='/wiki/will' title='will'>will</a>
Translations
done, given, or acting of one's own free will
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done by design or intention; intentional
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working or done without payment
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endowed with the power of will
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of or relating to voluntaryism
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Adverb
voluntary (comparative more voluntary, superlative most voluntary)
- (obsolete) Voluntarily.
- 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.4:
- And all that els was pretious and deare, / The sea unto him voluntary brings [...].
- 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.4:
Noun
voluntary (plural voluntaries)
- (music) A short piece of music, often having improvisation, played on a solo instrument.
- A volunteer.
- A supporter of voluntarism; a voluntarist.
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