Synonyms for involuntary
ɪnˈvɒl ənˌtɛr iin·vol·un·ta·ry

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these synonyms:

1. involuntaryadjective

   Synonyms:
   unvoluntary

2. involuntaryadjective

   Without intention; unintentional.

   He involuntarily overheard the conversation.

   Synonyms:
   unvoluntary

3. involuntaryadjective

   Not voluntary or willing; contrary or opposed to explicit will or desire; unwilling.

   He found himself the involuntary witness in the trial.

   Synonyms:
   unvoluntary

English Synonyms and Antonyms(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these synonyms:

1. involuntary

   That is spontaneous which is freely done, with no external compulsion and, in human actions, without special premeditation or distinct determination of the will; that is voluntary which is freely done with distinct act of will; that is involuntary which is independent of the will, and perhaps in opposition to it; a willing act is not only in accordance with will, but with desire. Thus voluntary and involuntary, which are antonyms of each other, are both partial synonyms of spontaneous. We speak of spontaneous generation, spontaneous combustion, spontaneous sympathy, an involuntary start, an unbidden tear, voluntary agreement, willing submission. A babe's smile in answer to that of its mother is spontaneous; the smile of a pouting child wheedled into good humor is involuntary. In physiology the action of the heart and lungs is called involuntary; the growth of the hair and nails is spontaneous; the action of swallowing is voluntary up to a certain point, beyond which it becomes involuntary or automatic. In the fullest sense of that which is not only without the will but distinctly in opposition to it, or compulsory, involuntary becomes an antonym, not only of voluntary but of spontaneous; as, involuntary servitude. A spontaneous outburst of applause is of necessity an act of volition, but so completely dependent on sympathetic impulse that it would seem frigid to call it voluntary, while to call it involuntary would imply some previous purpose or inclination not to applaud.

   Synonyms:
   automatic, free, impulsive, instinctive, spontaneous, unbidden, voluntary, willing

Princeton's WordNet(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these synonyms:

1. involuntary, nonvoluntary, unvoluntaryadjective

   not subject to the control of the will

   "involuntary manslaughter"; "involuntary servitude"; "an involuntary shudder"; "It (becoming a hero) was involuntary. They sank my boat"- John F.Kennedy

   Synonyms:
   nonvoluntary, unvoluntary

   Antonyms:
   unpaid, uncoerced, self-imposed, willful, wilful, willing, voluntary, volunteer(a), unforced, freewill

2. involuntaryadjective

   controlled by the autonomic nervous system; without conscious control

   "involuntary muscles"; "gave an involuntary start"

   Synonyms:
   nonvoluntary, unvoluntary

   Antonyms:
   unforced, freewill, volunteer(a), voluntary, uncoerced, wilful, willful, willing, unpaid, self-imposed

Matched Categories

1. • Physiology

Dictionary of English Synonymes(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these synonyms:

1. involuntaryadjective

   Synonyms:
   instinctive, automatic, blind, independent of the will

2. involuntaryadjective

   Synonyms:
   unwilling, reluctant, compulsory, against one's will

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated Words(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these synonyms:

1. involuntaryadjective

   Synonyms:
   uncontrollable, instinctive, automatic, compulsory, forced

PPDB, the paraphrase database(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these paraphrases:

1. List of paraphrases for "involuntary":

   unintentional, unintended, inadvertent, non-voluntary, unwitting, forced, unsolicited, accidental, enforced, dilation

How to pronounce involuntary?

How to say involuntary in sign language?

Words popularity by usage frequency

How to use involuntary in a sentence?

1. Václav Havel:

   Human beings are compelled to live within a lie, but they can be compelled to do so only because they are in fact capable of living in this way. Therefore not only does the system alienate humanity, but at the same time alienated humanity supports this system as its own involuntary master plan, as a degenerate image of its own degeneration, as a record of people's own failure as individuals.

2. Maggie Moon:

   Pleasant food aromas stimulate an involuntary physiological reaction : the mouth will salivate and the stomach will contract, mimicking hunger pangs.

3. Robert Hilliard:

   GM knew this defect caused this death yet, instead of telling the truth, watched silently as Candice was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter.

4. Northrop Frye:

   It is clear that all verbal structures with meaning are verbal imitations of that elusive psychological and physiological process known as thought, a process stumbling through emotional entanglements, sudden irrational convictions, involuntary gleams of insight, rationalized prejudices, and blocks of panic and inertia, finally to reach a completely incommunicable intuition.

5. Vaclav Havel:

   Human beings are compelled to live within a lie, but they can be compelled to do so only because they are in fact capable of living in this way. Therefore not only does the system alienate humanity, but at the same time alienated humanity supports this system as its own involuntary masterplan, as a degenerate image of its own degeneration, as a record of people's own failure as individuals.