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vel·le·i·ty

(vĕ-lēĭ-tē, və-)

n. pl. vel·le·i·ties

1. Weak desire or volition.

2. A slight or weak wish or inclination: "He felt cast out ... divorced from the caprices and the velleities of childhood" (Anita Brookner).

[New Latin velleitās, from Latin velle, to wish; see wel-¹ in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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