恣意

zìyì
adverb #31,438

Meanings

  1. 1 unrestrained; without restraint
  2. 2 willfully; wantonly
  3. 3 recklessly

Examples

Tā zìyì huīhuò fùmǔ de qián.
He squandered his parents' money without restraint.
Háizimen zài cǎodì shàng zìyì bēnpǎo.
The children ran freely across the grass.

Tips

register
Literary register, often pejorative — 恣意 'do as one pleases without regard for others' is a fixed phrase. The 'heart' radical in hints at 'following one's heart (heedlessly).' In positive contexts (children playing, artists creating) it shades into 'freely / unbridled.'

Stroke Order