Willless

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Lacking willpower, determination, or the ability to make decisions; passive and unable to assert oneself
2. Lacking the capacity for personal agency or preference, one is described as passive and devoid of the will to choose or act independently
3. Showing an absence of determination or strength of character, resulting in passivity and an inability to assert personal choices

Etymology: "Willless" is a plain compound: the noun "will" joined to the suffix "-less," which means "without" or "lacking." Put together, it means lacking will, that is, lacking the faculty of choosing or acting for oneself. The suffix "-less" has been productive in English since Old English, attaching to nouns to form adjectives of absence, as in "careless," "hopeless," and "homeless," so "willless" follows a pattern that speakers could build on demand. The word's meaning follows directly from its parts. "Will" in the sense of deliberate choice or determination is the root of the adjective, so a person described as willless has no inner drive to decide or resolve. The word is rare, and most of its use is in writing that wants to describe someone who simply goes along with events rather than shaping them.

Synonyms: submissive, passive, docile, compliant, yielding

Antonyms: willful, assertive, determined, stubborn, independent