Word · Frequency #9830
involuntary
无意的；非故意的
done without intention or deliberate choice; unintentional.
- 1.
Without intention; unintentional.
非故意的；无意的。
- 2.
not subject to the control of the will; ; ; ; - John F.Kennedy
非自愿的；不受意志控制的
- 3.
Not voluntary or willing; contrary or opposed to explicit will or desire; unwilling.
非自愿的；违反意愿的；不情愿的。
- 4.
controlled by the autonomic nervous system; without conscious control
自主神经系统控制的；无意识的
不由自主的；不自主的；非自愿的；被迫的；非故意的；无意的。；非自愿的；不受意志控制的；非自愿的；违反意愿的；不情愿的。
In use
He let out an involuntary gasp when he saw the spider.
Involuntary muscle twitches can be caused by fatigue or stress.
She gave an involuntary smile at the memory of her childhood.
involuntary manslaughter
involuntary servitude
an involuntary shudder
It (becoming a hero) was involuntary. They sank my boat
involuntary muscles
gave an involuntary start
Connections
Collocations
- involuntary muscle
- 不随意肌
- The heart is an involuntary muscle that works without conscious effort.心脏是一种不随意肌，无需意识努力就能工作。
- involuntary movement
- 不自主运动
- His involuntary movements were a side effect of the medication.他的不自主运动是药物的副作用。
- involuntary response
- 无意识反应
- Blinking is an involuntary response to protect the eyes.眨眼是保护眼睛的无意识反应。
- involuntary hospitalization
- 强制住院
- The patient was placed under involuntary hospitalization for his own safety.为了患者自身安全，他被强制住院。
- involuntary manslaughter
- 过失杀人
- He was charged with involuntary manslaughter after the accident.事故后他被指控过失杀人。
Learner notes
Memory Tip
in（不）+ voluntary（自愿）= 不自愿的，如心跳、打喷嚏等无意识动作。
Context & Register
语域：mixed 常见场景：medicine、psychology、law 该词在医学、心理学和法律等专业语境中较常见，表示无意识或不自主的状态，属于中性偏正式用语。
Pronunciation & Spelling
Only voluntary rhymes with involuntary, sharing the same stressed vowel /ɑː/ and following sounds /ləntɛri/. Other words (necessary, military, secretary, elementary, extraordinary) end in -ary but have different stress patterns and vowel sounds; do not rely on spelling for pronunciation.
Usage priority
Collins 词频等级为 1，建议结合例句记忆，而不是只背中文释义。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.