William Thompson may refer to:

Academics

• William Forde Thompson, 21st century psychologist
• William Hepworth Thompson (1810–1886), English classical scholar
• William Gilman Thompson (1856–1927), American professor of medicine
• William Oxley Thompson (1855–1933), president of Ohio State University
• William Hertzog Thompson (1895–1981), American psychology professor and minister
• William Irwin Thompson (1938–2020), American social philosopher and cultural critic
• William Robert Thompson (1923/4–1979), Canadian psychologist and behavior geneticist

Entertainment

• William Thompson (poet) (1712–1766), English poet
• William C. Thompson (cinematographer) (1899–1963), American cinematographer
• William H. Thompson (actor), (1852-1923), American actor
• William Tappan Thompson (1812–1882), American humorist and journalist
• Will Lamartine Thompson (1847–1909), American composer

Military

• William Thompson (general) (1736–1781), American Revolutionary War general
• William Thompson (Medal of Honor, 1861) (1812–1872), signal quartermaster in the American Civil War
• William P. Thompson (1844–1864), American Civil War recipient of the Medal of Honor
• William Francis Kynaston Thompson (1909–1980), British officer who fought and was captured at Arnhem
• William Thompson (admiral) (1922–2018), American admiral, former chief of the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
• William Thompson (Medal of Honor, 1950) (1927–1950), Korean War recipient of the Medal of Honor
• Frank Thompson (SOE officer) (William Frank Thompson, 1920–1944), British officer who worked in Bulgaria in the Second World War
• James Thompson (VC) (William James Thompson, 1830–1891), English recipient of the Victoria Cross

Politics

Science

• William Thompson (naturalist) (1805–1852), Irish ornithologist and botanist
• William Thompson (viticulturist) (1816–1897), Englishman who developed the Thompson Seedless grape
• William Wardlaw Thompson (died 1917), South African ichthyologist and zoologist
• William Thompson (physician) (1861–1926), physician, Registrar General for Ireland
• William A. Thompson (1864–1925), member of the U.S Army Corps of Engineers
• William Boyce Thompson (1869–1930), American mining engineer and financier
• William R. Thompson (1887–1972), Canadian entomologist
• William Francis Thompson (1888–1965), American ichthyologist
• William Lay Thompson (1930–2016), American ornithologist

Sports

• William Thompson (boxer) (1811–1880), British prizefighter
• William Thompson (archer) (1848–1918), American archer
• William V. Thompson (1865–1938), American bowler
• William Thompson (cricketer, born 1866) (1866–1920), English first-class cricketer
• Willie Thompson (William Pringle Thompson, 1867–1928), English footballer, played for Newcastle United in the 1890s
• William Thompson (cricketer, born 1882) (1882–1954), English cricketer
• William Thompson (Australian cricketer) (born 1891, date of death unknown), Australian cricketer
• William Thompson (British Guiana cricketer) (born 1888, date of death unknown), Guyanese cricketer
• William Thompson (rower) (1908–1956), American Olympic rower
• William Thompson (footballer), Scottish footballer
• William Thompson (skier) (1905-1994), Canadian Olympic skier
• Will Thompson (baseball) (1870–1962), American baseball player

Other

• William Thompson (banker), Governor of the Bank of England from 1725 to 1727
• William Thompson (Methodist) (1733–1799), first President of the Methodist Conference after Wesley's death
• William Thompson (philosopher) (1775–1833), Irish political and philosophical writer and social reformer
• William Thompson (journalist) (1846–1934), American Indian fighter and newspaper editor
• William Clyde Thompson (1839–1912), leader of the Mount Tabor Indian Community in Texas
• William Thompson (bishop) (1885–1975), Anglican bishop of Persia (Iran)
• William A. Thompson (bishop) (1946-2020), Anglican bishop of the Diocese of Western Anglicans (U.S.)
• William Thompson (archdeacon of Cork) (1766–1833)
• William Thompson (archdeacon of Wellington), Canadian Anglican priest
• William C. Thompson (New York judge) (1924–2018), New York politician and judge
• William Paul Thompson (1937–1989), American serial killer
• William L. ("T") Thompson (born 1951), pilot for Delta Air Lines, lawyer, and businessman
• William C. Thompson (Alabama judge) (born 1962), judge on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals
• William Harvey Thompson (died 1927), prohibition enforcement agent in Seattle, Washington
• William Thompson (confidence man), American criminal
• William S. Thompson, American judge in West Virginia
• William Thompson (pirate), ship captain who stole the Treasure of Lima c. 1820
• William Thompson (1805–1866), also known as Wiremu Tamihana, Maori preacher

See also

• Bill Thompson (disambiguation)
• Billy Thompson (disambiguation)
• William Thomson (disambiguation)
• William H. Thompson (disambiguation)
• William Thompson House (disambiguation)