Voluntary
Voluntary , adjective
[Latin voluntarius, from voluntas will, choice, from the root of velle to will, p. pr. volens; akin to English will: compare French volontaire, Of. also voluntaire. See Will, transitive verb, and compare Benevolent, Volition, Volunteer.]
1.
Proceeding from the will; produced in or by an act of choice.
That sin or guilt pertains exclusively to voluntary action is the true principle of orthodoxy.
2.
Unconstrained by the interference of another; unimpelled by the influence of another; not prompted or persuaded by another; done of his or its own accord; spontaneous; acting of one's self, or of itself; free.
Our voluntary service he requires.
She fell to lust a voluntary prey.
3.
Done by design or intention; intentional; purposed; intended; not accidental; as, if a man kills another by lopping a tree, it is not voluntary manslaughter.
4.
(Physiology) Of or pertaining to the will; subject to, or regulated by, the will; as, the voluntary motions of an animal, such as the movements of the leg or arm (in distinction from involuntary motions, such as the movements of the heart); the voluntary muscle fibers, which are the agents in voluntary motion.
5.
Endowed with the power of willing; as, man is a voluntary agent.
God did not work as a necessary, but a voluntary, agent, intending beforehand, and decreeing with himself, that which did outwardly proceed from him.
6.
(Law) Free; without compulsion; according to the will, consent, or agreement, of a party; without consideration; gratuitous; without valuable consideration.
7.
(Ecclesiastical) Of or pertaining to voluntarism; as, a voluntary church, in distinction from an established or state church.
Collocations (5)
Voluntary affidavit or Voluntary oath (Law) , an affidavit or oath made in an extrajudicial matter.
Voluntary conveyance (Law) , a conveyance without valuable consideration.
Voluntary escape (Law) , the escape of a prisoner by the express consent of the sheriff.
Voluntary ({not transcribed}) , noun
1.
One who engages in any affair of his own free will; a volunteer. [Rare] — Shakespeare
2.
(Music) A piece played by a musician, often extemporarily, according to his fancy; specifically, an organ solo played before, during, or after divine service.
3.
(Ecclesiastical) One who advocates voluntarism.