freewill

Definitions

The power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate; the ability to act at one's own discretion.

The doctrine that human beings have the capacity to choose their actions and are therefore morally responsible for them.

Examples

The philosopher argued that human beings possess the freewill to make their own moral choices.

She decided to volunteer for the project of her own freewill, without any pressure from her supervisor.

The debate over whether our actions are predetermined or the result of freewill has lasted for centuries.

Synonyms

volition autonomy choice self-determination discretion willpower agency

Antonyms

determinism compulsion coercion necessity fatalism constraint subjugation