wayward

[ wey-werd ]
/ ˈweɪ wərd /

adjective

turned or turning away from what is right or proper; willful; disobedient: a wayward son; wayward behavior.
swayed or prompted by caprice; capricious: a wayward impulse; to be wayward in one's affections.
turning or changing irregularly; irregular: a wayward breeze.

Origin of wayward

1350–1400; Middle English; aphetic variant of awayward. See away, -ward

SYNONYMS FOR wayward

3 unsteady, inconstant, changeable.

OTHER WORDS FROM wayward

way·ward·ly, adverb way·ward·ness, noun un·way·ward, adjective

Example sentences from the Web for wayward

British Dictionary definitions for wayward

wayward
/ (ˈweɪwəd) /

adjective

wanting to have one's own way regardless of the wishes or good of others
capricious, erratic, or unpredictable

Derived forms of wayward

waywardly, adverb waywardness, noun

Word Origin for wayward

C14: changed from awayward turned or turning away