Definition of LIBERAL

liberal

Plural: liberals

Noun

  • A person who holds liberal views or supports progressive policies.
  • a person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties
  • a person who favors an economic theory of laissez-faire and self-regulating markets
  • One with liberal views, supporting individual liberty (see Wikipedia's article on Liberalism).
  • Someone with progressive or left-wing views; one with a left-wing ideology.
  • 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).
  • A conservative, especially a liberal conservative.

Adjective Satellite

  • showing or characterized by broad-mindedness
    • "a liberal newspaper"
  • having political or social views favoring reform and progress
  • given or giving freely
    • "a liberal backer of the arts"
  • not literal

Adjective

  • tolerant of change; not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or tradition

Adj

  • Pertaining to those arts and sciences the study of which is considered to provide general knowledge, as opposed to vocational/occupational, technical or mechanical training.
  • Generous; permitting liberty; willing to give unsparingly.
  • Ample, abundant; generous in quantity.
  • Unrestrained, licentious.
  • Widely open to new ideas, willing to depart from established opinions or conventions; permissive.
  • Open to political or social changes and reforms associated with either classical or modern liberalism.

Examples

  • Add a liberal sprinkling of salt.
  • He had a full education studying the liberal arts.
  • He took a liberal approach to his Scrabble strategy, open to many possibilities.
  • He was liberal with his compliments.
  • Her parents had liberal ideas about child-rearing.

Origin / 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.

Scrabble Score: 9

liberal: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
liberal: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
liberal: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 12

liberal: valid Words With Friends Word