goodwill
noun
good·will
ˌgu̇d-ˈwil 
1
a
: a kindly feeling of approval and support : benevolent interest or concern
people of goodwill
b(1)
: the favor or advantage that a business has acquired especially through its brands and its good reputation
(2)
: the value of projected earnings increases of a business especially as part of its purchase price
(3)
: the excess of the purchase price of a company over its book value which represents the value of goodwill as an intangible asset for accounting purposes
2
a
: cheerful consent
accepted the terms of the contract with goodwill
b
: willing effort
Examples of goodwill in a Sentence
She has goodwill toward all her coworkers.
They allowed him to keep the extra money as a gesture of goodwill.
Recent Examples on the Web
While tariffs can be negotiated away with the stroke of a pen, rebuilding consumer trust and goodwill toward Americans and its products could take a generation.
—
Jackie Snow, Quartz, 7 Apr. 2025
Since contact with passengers was allowed post-pandemic, he's been greeting commuters with a cheery brand of goodwill that makes their day.
—Terry Baddoo, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2025
This feels like a moment for constructive politics, for saying the right things, for trying to preserve just enough goodwill to light up the stadium next Thursday for the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final against Eintracht Frankfurt.
—Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025
Bottom line: If Brooklinen is going to issue a refund as a goodwill gesture, why not go all the way and send you a check?
—Christopher Elliott, King Features Syndicate, Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for goodwill
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Jackie Snow, Quartz, 7 Apr. 2025
Since contact with passengers was allowed post-pandemic, he's been greeting commuters with a cheery brand of goodwill that makes their day.
—Terry Baddoo, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2025
This feels like a moment for constructive politics, for saying the right things, for trying to preserve just enough goodwill to light up the stadium next Thursday for the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final against Eintracht Frankfurt.
—Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025
Bottom line: If Brooklinen is going to issue a refund as a goodwill gesture, why not go all the way and send you a check?
—Christopher Elliott, King Features Syndicate, Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for goodwill
Cite this Entry
“Goodwill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/goodwill. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
goodwill
noun
good·will
-ˈwil
1
: kindly feeling : benevolence
2
: the value of the trade a business has built up
3
a
: cheerful consent
b
: willing effort
Legal Definition
goodwill
noun
good·will
ˈgu̇d-ˌwil
1
: an intangible asset that is made up of the favor or prestige which a business has acquired beyond the mere value of what it sells due to the personality or experience of those conducting it, their reputation for skill or dependability, the business's location, or any other circumstance incidental to the business that tends to draw and retain customers
2
a
: the value of projected increases in the earnings of a business especially as part of its purchase price
b
: the excess of the purchase price of a business above the value assigned for tax purposes to its other net assets
Note: The Internal Revenue Code requires the purchaser of a business to allocate the purchase price among the various types of assets. Frequently the purchase price is greater than the sum of the values of the individual assets. The excess is labeled goodwill. Because of its indefinite life, goodwill is not amortizable as an asset. The purchaser will therefore usually try to keep the allocation to goodwill as small as possible.
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