Etymology

Noun

1. One who enters into, or offers for, any service of his own free will, especially when done without pay.
2. One who enters into military service voluntarily, but who, when in service, is subject to discipline and regulations like other soldiers; -- opposed to conscript; specifically, a voluntary member of the organized militia of a country as distinguished from the standing army.
3. A grantee in a voluntary conveyance; one to whom a conveyance is made without valuable consideration; a party, other than a wife or child of the grantor, to whom, or for whose benefit, a voluntary conveyance is made.
4. A person who acts out of his own will without a legal obligation, such as a donor.
5. A plant that grows in disturbed soil.
6. A native or resident of the American state of Tennessee.

Related terms

• volition
• volitional
• voluntarism
• voluntarist
• voluntary

Verb

1. To enlist oneself as a volunteer.
2. To do or offer to do something voluntarily.
   • to volunteer for doing the dishes
   • to volunteer an explanation
3. To grow without human sowing or intentional cultivation.