What does wilful mean?
Word: Wilful
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Wilful means done on purpose, even though the person knows it is wrong. A wilful child is one who insists on doing what they want.
Synonyms: intentional, stubborn, headstrong
Antonyms: obedient
How do you spell wilful?
Syllables: wil - ful
Tricky part: British English spells the first part wil, with a single l, even though the word comes from will.
Watch out for: wilfel, welful
Memory tip: Before will can join the rest of the word, it slims down and drops an l, leaving wil.
Wilful in a sentence
Example 1: Our cat is so wilful that she sleeps only on the one chair we keep telling her to leave.
Example 2: The wilful toddler refused to wear his sweater on a cold morning.
Example 3: Wilful waste of food upsets my mother more than anything else.
Fun Fact
Wilful is one of a group of words where British English uses one l and American English two: Americans write willful, and the British instalment and enrolment become installment and enrollment in the US.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell Spies
Choose the pair which has a spelling error:
a) fancy : fanciful
b) beauty : beautiful
c) pity : pitiful
d) will : wilfull
Show answer
d) will : wilfull. Pitiful, beautiful and fanciful end with a single l, and so does wilful.
Word Puzzle
Match the words with the correct options:
1. wilful 2. timid 3. weary a. tired b. shy c. deliberate
a) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
b) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
c) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a
d) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a
Show answer
c) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a. These are pairs of words with the same meaning: wilful and deliberate, timid and shy, weary and tired.
Jumble Tumble
Choose the correct sequence of the jumbled letters to form a meaningful word:
fluwil 123456
a) 425136
b) 254136
c) 452163
d) 452136
Show answer
d) 452136. The w in position 4 leads, and the code closes on the l in position 6.
Word Tally
How many words are misspelt in the given sentence?
Granny says our puppy's wilful habit of chewing slipers began the day we brought him home, and no amount of gentle scolding has cured it.
a) 3
b) 1
c) 2
d) 0
Show answer
b) 1. Slippers needs a double p; every other word, wilful included, is spelt correctly.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Who is behaving in a wilful way?
a) a girl who trips over a school bag that she did not see
b) a boy who forgets his tiffin box at home one busy morning
c) a boy who kicks a ball indoors after being told to stop
d) a girl who sneezes loudly in the middle of morning prayers
Show answer
c) a boy who kicks a ball indoors after being told to stop
2. Mum asked Kiran to take his raincoat, but he wilfully left it at home. What does this tell us?
a) he forgot it in a hurry
b) he chose to leave it at home
c) he could not find it anywhere
d) he had lent it to a friend
Show answer
b) he chose to leave it at home
