liberal
Generous; permitting liberty; willing to give unsparingly.
Adjective 4 meanings
Generous; permitting liberty; willing to give unsparingly.
“He was liberal with his compliments.”
Ample, abundant; generous in quantity.
“Add a liberal sprinkling of salt.”
Widely open to new ideas, willing to depart from established opinions or conventions; permissive.
“Her parents had liberal ideas about child-rearing.”
Pertaining to a type of education the purpose of which is personal development rather than functional learning.
Noun 4 meanings
One with liberal views, supporting individual liberty (see Wikipedia's article on Liberalism).
Someone with progressive or left-wing views, especially on social and environmental issues.
A supporter of any of several liberal parties.
One who favors individual voting rights, human and civil rights, and laissez-faire markets (also called "classical liberal"; compare libertarian).
Etymology
The adjective is from Old French liberal, from Latin līberālis (“befitting a freeman”), from līber (“free”); it is attested since the 14th century. The noun is first attested in the 1800s.
Similar and opposite words
LIBERAL at a glance
LIBERAL has 7 letters and scores 9 points in Scrabble (L 1 + I 1 + B 3 + E 1 + R 1 + A 1 + L 1) and 12 in Words With Friends, before board bonuses. It ranks #2,163 by how often it appears in everyday English. It is valid in ENABLE, NWL2023, Collins/SOWPODS.
Rhymes with liberal
All rhymesOne letter away
- LITERAL7
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