i Register
In some senses, willy-nilly is marked as idiomatic. Watch for register when choosing this word.
willy-nilly
/ˌwɪl.iːˈnɪl.iː/
adv 2adj 2
Collocations
5ADJ.
all, current, proper
VERB + WILLY-NILLY
can't, don't, go, jump, made, saw, seems, trifle
WILLY-NILLY + NOUN
nun, sensations
PREP.
into, off, out, without
ADV.
only, such
Definitions
adv
1
Whether desired or not; without regard for consequences or wishes of those affected; whether willingly or unwillingly.
Some writers chasing money churn out novels willy-nilly.
Whenever I see a long handsome neck, willy nilly, the thought will come uppermost—What a capital neck for carving! Those cursed executions! One can't rid one's mind of them.
2
Seemingly at random; haphazardly.
The novel Alice in Wonderland describes a place where things happen willy-nilly.
adj
1
That happens whether willingly or unwillingly.
[S]omeone saw thy willy-nilly nun / Vying a tress against our golden fern.
O my God, if man be only / A willy-nilly current of sensations— / Reaction needs must follow revel—yet— / Why feel remorse, he, knowing that he must have / Moved in the iron grooves of Destiny?
2
Seemingly random; haphazard; arbitrary.
Thesaurus
Synonyms
adverb — in a random manner
- randomly
- indiscriminately
- haphazardly
- arbitrarily
Antonyms
Idioms & Phrases
Example Bank
601
Some writers chasing money churn out novels willy-nilly.
Wiktionary02
Whenever I see a long handsome neck, willy nilly, the thought will come uppermost—What a capital neck for carving! Those cursed executions! One can't rid one's mind of them.
Wiktionary03
[I]f you love him not, then you can love me, and, therefore, can come to please yourself, willy-nilly. What! am I to be thwarted in such a trifle? Willy-nilly, I say, I will marry thee. Come—we waste
Wiktionary04
[S]omeone saw thy willy-nilly nun / Vying a tress against our golden fern.
Wiktionary05
O my God, if man be only / A willy-nilly current of sensations— / Reaction needs must follow revel—yet— / Why feel remorse, he, knowing that he must have / Moved in the iron grooves of Destiny?
Wiktionary06
You can't just walk out willy-nilly!
Tatoeba · #5988118Usage Notes
Your note
not saved0 chars