Meaning & use
willpower
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
The mental strength that lets you keep trying for a goal or refuse something you want.
Grammar: No plural and no 'a' before it: say 'She has great willpower', not 'a great willpower'.
Patterns
- have the willpower to do something
- need willpower
- use willpower
- lack willpower
It took real willpower to finish the marathon in the rain.
He has plenty of willpower, so he never touches sweets during the week.
Studying at home demands more willpower than studying in a library.
noununcountable
The ability to control your own impulses and stop yourself from doing something you should not do.
Grammar: Often used with 'sheer' or 'pure' to emphasize effort: 'by sheer willpower'.
Patterns
- willpower to resist something
- willpower over something
Losing weight is more about willpower than about special diets.
She used pure willpower to stay calm while the audience waited.
Common combinations
- sheer willpower
- He got through the final year of his degree on sheer willpower.
- a test of willpower
- Walking past the bakery every morning is a daily test of willpower.
- willpower and determination
- Her success came from willpower and determination rather than luck.
- lack of willpower
- People often blame a lack of willpower when habits are actually the problem.
- strengthen your willpower
- Small daily choices can strengthen your willpower over time.
Synonyms and how they differ
- self-control
- Self-control is broader and also covers staying calm and polite; willpower focuses on effort toward a goal or resisting temptation.
- determination
- Determination stresses a firm decision to succeed and may last for years; willpower is the moment-by-moment mental effort.
- discipline
- Discipline suggests trained, regular habits rather than raw mental strength in a single difficult moment.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: willpower or will power?
willpower vs will power
The usual spelling is one word, 'willpower'. Two separate words are seen but are less standard.
Practice
Choose the sentence that uses 'willpower' correctly.
Choose one answer.
'Willpower' is uncountable, so it takes 'the' or no article and has no plural: 'the willpower to learn'. The options with 'a' or 'willpowers' treat it as a countable noun, which is wrong.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “willpower”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.