wilful
wil·ful/ˈwɪlfʊl/adjective
wilful is spelled W-I-L-F-U-L: 6 letters and 2 syllables (wil·ful). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 38,416th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, wilful means “Intentional; deliberate” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in wilful?
| Letters | 6: W-I-L-F-U-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: wil·ful |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 38,416th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is wilful?
Wilful appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 38,416th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce wilful?
- /ˈwɪlfʊl/
- /ˈwɪlfəl/
Wilful has 2 syllables, split wil·ful in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Sapaa-wilful.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of wilful
- more wilful comparative
- wilfuler comparative
- wilfuller comparative
- most wilful superlative
- wilfulest superlative
- wilfullest superlative
- willful US
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does wilful mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
UKIntentional; deliberate.
- 2
UKStubborn and determined.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Wilful in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | vorsätzlich, absichtlich, willentlich , eigenwillig, eigensinnig |
| Portuguese | intencional , persistente, obstinado, voluntarioso |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does wilful come from?
From Middle English wilful; equivalent to will + -ful.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).