If you’re unsure what to call a person who does things without being asked, you’ve come to the right place!
In this article, we’ve provided a list of words that describe acting without being asked both positively and negatively. So, read on!
Words for Doing Something Without Being Asked
- Unsolicited
- Unbidden
- Initiative
- Voluntarily
- Unprompted
- Spontaneous
- Unasked
- Unrequested
- Unilaterally
- Independently
- Impromptu
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- When someone tries to help without you asking, you can say that their actions were “unsolicited.”
- “Unbidden” is a word to describe a person who acts without the invitation to do so.
- When you want to talk about someone that does things without being asked positively, you can say they took “initiative.”
Stick around! In the next section, we’ll discuss our top three words for when someone does something without being asked in more detail.
Moreover, we’ll provide some helpful example sentences making use of each of our choices.
Unsolicited
The best word for someone who does something without being asked is to say that their actions were “unsolicited.”
Firstly, Merriam-Webster defines “unsolicited” as meaning “not asked for or requested.” Therefore, you can use this term when someone tries to do something good without being asked. Especially if their attempts are not appreciated.
Secondly, “unsolicited” is a suitably formal term to use at work or in other professional circumstances. However, it tends to have negative connotations.
Therefore, it wouldn’t work to say that an intern did something “unsolicited” if you were trying to praise their actions, for instance.
Finally, let’s see a couple of examples making use of this term:
Is there any reason why employees of this place should receive unsolicited marketing emails from the department upstairs?
Every week, he comes over and tries to give me unsolicited advice about my interior decorating.
Unbidden
If you’re looking for a word that means doing something without being asked, “unbidden” is a perfect choice.
After all, according to Merriam-Webster, “unbidden” is defined as “not bidden: unasked, uninvited.” This makes sense, as to bid someone is to make a request.
Therefore, if someone does something for you without you asking them to do so, you could say that they acted “unbidden.”
This word comes across as rather formal, so it would be appropriate to use it in formal, business, legal, or academic writing. However, you may be less likely to hear it used in casual conversations these days.
Nevertheless, let’s see how you might use this phrase in a couple of examples:
The plaintiff entered my property unbidden and sustained an injury on the cliff edge despite multiple warning signs in the area.
The words seemed to flow unbidden from the tips of my fingers as I typed, and, in the morning, I had finished my novel.
Initiative
“Initiative” is a trait that describes someone who completes a task without being told, especially in the context of work. This term has very positive connotations.
Firstly, the Cambridge Dictionary defines “initiative” as “the ability to use your judgment to make decisions and do things without needing to be told what to do.”
Secondly, this is a great trait for an employee to have. After all, it means they can take note of things that need to be done and start on them without instruction.
Therefore, if you’re trying to figure out how to describe someone who does things without being asked in a positive way, you can say that they “take initiative.”
Finally, let’s see this term in action in a couple of example sentences:
Joanne is a very pleasant young woman, but I was disappointed by her lack of initiative in the office.
What you did was risky, but you took initiative, and I respect that.