will
/wɪl/verb
Want, intend, or express future action
From O.English willan (to want).
Lineage
Proto-Indo-EuropeanGermanicnot directly attested
Selected stage
Modern English
will — Want, intend, or express future action
The story
At its heart, will is about wanting—and that sense is still audible in “I will.” It comes through Middle English willen and Old English willan, “to want,” from Proto-Germanic wiljaną and ultimately Proto-Indo-European welh₁-, “to choose, wish.” Old English willan could express desire, intention, willingness, habitual action, and even futurity. Over time, its future-making use became one of its most familiar roles, while the older sense of deliberate wanting remains in expressions such as “do what you will.”