willy-nilly
adverb or adjective
wil·ly-nil·ly
ˌwi-lē-ˈni-lē 
1
: by compulsion : without choice
2
: in a haphazard or spontaneous manner
Synonyms
Examples of willy-nilly in a Sentence
they were in a hurry, so they just tossed everything into the room willy-nilly, leaving it to be all sorted out later
Recent Examples on the Web
Their quarterback situation is a mess with all of them throwing interceptions willy-nilly.
—
Hank Gola, New York Daily News, 5 Jan. 2024
The double order is emerging, as the masters of the chessboard, willy-nilly, make room for the web.
—Anne-Marie Slaughter, Foreign Affairs, 4 Oct. 2016
That’s a big deal, because the brain is not just willy-nilly making more cells left and right and using up all its energy.
—Nicholas Stfleur, STAT, 12 Apr. 2024
The Chinese Communist Party has long censored social media willy-nilly, including blocking Facebook, YouTube, X and more.
—Gabriel Levin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Mar. 2024
Still, retailers can’t just slash products willy-nilly, said David Berliner, who leads the business restructuring and turnaround practice at BDO.
—Anne D'innocenzio, Fortune, 12 Feb. 2024
Hundreds of sports event media passes hang haphazardly on a cork board on one wall, while 47 Bruce Springsteen tickets and a concert set list are thumb-tacked, willy-nilly, to another board on a nearby wall.
—Cynthia Billhartz Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 30 Jan. 2024
There is something so counterintuitive about the claim that God became human that the minds of those who but entertain the notion change willy-nilly.
—Robert Barron, WSJ, 4 Jan. 2024
Coppola followed suit, hopping from state to state willy-nilly with his crew in search of what Natalie’s story would be, with no idea how his film was going to end.
—David Kamp, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2023
Hank Gola, New York Daily News, 5 Jan. 2024
The double order is emerging, as the masters of the chessboard, willy-nilly, make room for the web.
—Anne-Marie Slaughter, Foreign Affairs, 4 Oct. 2016
That’s a big deal, because the brain is not just willy-nilly making more cells left and right and using up all its energy.
—Nicholas Stfleur, STAT, 12 Apr. 2024
The Chinese Communist Party has long censored social media willy-nilly, including blocking Facebook, YouTube, X and more.
—Gabriel Levin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Mar. 2024
Still, retailers can’t just slash products willy-nilly, said David Berliner, who leads the business restructuring and turnaround practice at BDO.
—Anne D'innocenzio, Fortune, 12 Feb. 2024
Hundreds of sports event media passes hang haphazardly on a cork board on one wall, while 47 Bruce Springsteen tickets and a concert set list are thumb-tacked, willy-nilly, to another board on a nearby wall.
—Cynthia Billhartz Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 30 Jan. 2024
There is something so counterintuitive about the claim that God became human that the minds of those who but entertain the notion change willy-nilly.
—Robert Barron, WSJ, 4 Jan. 2024
Coppola followed suit, hopping from state to state willy-nilly with his crew in search of what Natalie’s story would be, with no idea how his film was going to end.
—David Kamp, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'willy-nilly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Willy-nilly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/willy-nilly. Accessed 27 Jun. 2024.
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