Dictionary

willies en · NOUN

Etymology

The meaning "spell of nervousness", recorded since 1896, stems perhaps from the woollies, a dialectal term for "nervous uneasiness", probably in reference to the physical itchiness of wool garments. Or it might be a play on words relating to the ballet Giselle, performed in Paris in 1846, where the stage is flooded by the Wilis, who are the spooky, ephemeral, beautiful but evil ghosts of virgins who died before their wedding day. Watching the Wilis in Giselle is meant to give you the willies. Most English speakers pronounce 'Wilis' as 'willies'.

Meanings

1. (form-of, plural) plural of willy
   form of willy
2. (colloquial, plural, plural-only) A feeling of nervousness or fear.
   • I get the willies when I see closed doors. Even at work, where I am doing so well now, the sight of a closed door is sometimes enough to make me dread that something horrible is happening behind it, something that is going to affect me adversely. 1974, Joseph Heller, Something Happened, page 3:
   • Not that I'm given to that kind of thing really.... It was those damned bandages over my eyes, the medley of voices that had shouted back at me down the corridor. But I certainly was getting the willies - and once you get 'em, they grow. 1951, John Wyndham, The Day of the Triffids, Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, published 1954, page 15:
   • Staying in the haunted house gave me the willies.

Forms

Synonyms

fear (anxiety) · collywobbles (anxiety) · heebie-jeebies (anxiety) · creeps (anxiety)