with a will

From with + a + will (“firmity of purpose, fixity of intent”), originally often used to refer to rowing a boat vigorously.

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /ˌwɪθ‿ə ˈwɪl/

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• Rhymes: -ɪl

with a will

1. (idiomatic, originally nautical, dated) With willingness and zeal; with all one's heart or strength; earnestly, heartily.

   Synonym: resolutely

   • 1827 November 27, [James Fenimore Cooper], chapter VIII, in The Red Rover, […], volume III, Paris: […] [Lachevardiere] for Hector Bossange, […], →OCLC, page 179:

     «Yes!» muttered the Rover, with bitter irony, as his boat rowed under the stern of the cruiser of the Crown; «yes! I, and my officers, will taste of your banquet! But the viands shall be such as these hirelings of the King shall little relish!—Pull with a will, my men, pull; in an hour, you shall rummage the store-rooms of that fool, for your reward!»

   • 1859 July 16, Alfred Tennyson, “The Grandmother”, in Enoch Arden, &c., London: Edward Moxon & Co., […], published 1864, →OCLC, stanza XV, page 121:

     So Willy and I were wedded: I wore a lilac gown; / And the ringers rang with a will, and he gave the ringers a crown.

   • 1866, John Ruskin, “Lecture I. Work. (Delivered before the Working Men’s Institute, at Camberwell.)”, in The Crown of Wild Olive. Three Lectures on Work, Traffic, and War, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], →OCLC, page 44:

     Now, nobody does anything well that they cannot help doing: work is only done well when it is done with a will; and no man has a thoroughly sound will unless he knows he is doing what he should, and is in his place.

   • 1874, Thomas Hardy, “Adventures by the Shore”, in Far from the Madding Crowd. […], volume II, London: Smith, Elder & Co., […], →OCLC:

     Swimming with his right arm, he held up his left to hail them, splashing upon the waves, and shouting with all his might. […] Backing their oars and putting the boat about, they pulled towards him with a will, and in five or six minutes from the time of his first halloo, two of the sailors hauled him in over the stern.

   • 1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, “The Voyage”, in Treasure Island, London, Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC, part II (The Sea Cook), pages 77–78:

     And then the whole crew bore chorus:— / "Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!" / And at the third "Ho!" drove the bars before them with a will.

   • 1884 May (date written), Robert Louis Stevenson, “Requiem”, in Underwoods, London: Chatto and Windus, […], published 1887, →OCLC, book I (In English), page 43:

     Under the wide and starry sky, / Dig the grave and let me lie. / Glad did I live and gladly die, / And I laid me down with a will.

   • 1914 June, James Joyce, “After the Race”, in Dubliners, London: Grant Richards, →OCLC, page 56:

     Then an impromptu square dance, the men devising original figures. What merriment! Jimmy took his part with a will; this was seeing life, at least.

   • 1934 March 26, Mrs. Jacques S. Danielson, “Books: Hurstwurst [review of Anitra’s Dance (1934) by Fannie Hurst]”, in Time‎, New York, N.Y.: Time Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2020-12-24:

     Many a reader whose appetite rejoices in hearty fare tucked in his napkin, smacked his lips and fell to with a will.

   • 1982, Anita Desai, chapter 9, in The Village by the Sea, New Delhi; New York, N.Y.: Puffin Books, published 1992, →ISBN, page 174:

     He got Jagu's permission to spend the slack afternoon hours at the watchmender's without any trouble – Jagu was taciturn, but good-natured – and he set to learning the craft with a will.

• where there is a will there is a way

• “with a will, phrase” under “will, n.¹”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, March 2024.
• “with a will”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present, reproduced from Stuart Berg Flexner, editor in chief, Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2nd edition, New York, N.Y.: Random House, 1993, →ISBN.
• “with a will”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.