willing
will·ing/ˈwɪlɪŋ/adjective, verb
willing is spelled W-I-L-L-I-N-G: 7 letters and 2 syllables (will·ing). It appears 52 times per million words in written English, the 1,941st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, willing means “Ready to do something, particularly something that requires change or effort; not objecting” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in willing?
| Letters | 7: W-I-L-L-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: will·ing |
| In writing | 52 times per million words; the 1,941st 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 willing?
Willing appears 52 times per million words in written English, the 1,941st 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 willing?
- /ˈwɪlɪŋ/
Willing has 2 syllables, split will·ing in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-willing.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of willing
- more willing comparative
- most willing superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does willing mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Ready to do something, particularly something that requires change or effort; not objecting.
If my boyfriend isn't willing to change his drinking habits, I will split up with him.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of will
noun
- 1
obsoleterareThe execution of a will.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Willing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense ready to do something that is not a matter of course:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | volontaire, prêt |
| German | willens, gewillt, willig, bereit |
| Portuguese | disposto |
| Spanish | dispuesto, voluntarioso, gustoso, por la labor |
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.