Liberal

//ˈlɪb.(ə.)ɹəl// adj, name, noun

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    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.

    "He had a full education studying the liberal arts."

  2. 2
    Of or relating to the Liberal party, its membership, or its platform, policy, or viewpoint. not-comparable
  3. 3
    Generous; permitting liberty; willing to give unsparingly.

    "He was liberal with his compliments."

  4. 4
    Ample, abundant; generous in quantity.

    "Add a liberal sprinkling of salt."

  5. 5
    Unrestrained, licentious. obsolete

    "Myself, my brother, and this grieved count, Did see her, hear her, at that hour last night, Talk with a ruffian at her chamber-window; Who hath indeed, most like a liberal villain, Confess'd the vile encounters they have had A thousand times in secret."

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  1. 6
    Widely open to new ideas, willing to depart from established opinions or conventions; permissive.

    "Her parents had liberal ideas about child-rearing."

  2. 7
    Open to political or social changes and reforms associated with either classical or modern liberalism.

    "Endorsing the liberal anti-interventionist credo that the marketplace should act as the "site of verification," the advocates of white lead opposed government intervention for the sake of open economic competition, which they claimed revealed its true value and thus should be the sole determinant: "When the railways were built, the stage coaches disppeared; they died a timely death. If zinc white is truly superior to white lead, it will kill us in the marketplace, but the government should not intervene." These were the words of Expert-Bezançon, in his February 1903 deposition to the parliamentary committee examining the bill for banning lead-based pigments in paint."

Adjective
  1. 1
    showing or characterized by broad-mindedness wordnet
  2. 2
    tolerant of change; not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or tradition wordnet
  3. 3
    not literal wordnet
  4. 4
    given or giving freely wordnet
  5. 5
    having political or social views favoring reform and progress wordnet
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    An unincorporated community in Spencer County, Indiana, United States.
  2. 2
    A city, the county seat of Seward County, Kansas, United States.
  3. 3
    A small city in Barton County, Missouri, United States.
  4. 4
    An unincorporated community in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States.
Noun
  1. 1
    One with liberal views, supporting individual liberty (see Wikipedia's article on Liberalism).
  2. 2
    A political party and philosophy
  3. 3
    a person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties wordnet
  4. 4
    Someone with progressive or left-wing views, especially on social and environmental issues. Canadian, Philippine, US

    "And I love Puerto Ricans and Negros As long as they don't move next door. So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal."

  5. 5
    A member or supporter of a Liberal Party
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  1. 6
    a person who favors an economic theory of laissez-faire and self-regulating markets wordnet
  2. 7
    A supporter of any of several liberal parties.
  3. 8
    A member or supporter of the Liberal Party of Canada, or its predecessors, or provincial equivalents, or their predecessors Canadian
  4. 9
    One who favors individual voting rights, human and civil rights, and laissez-faire markets (also called "classical liberal"; compare libertarian). UK
  5. 10
    A Liberal Democrat. British
  6. 11
    A conservative, especially a liberal conservative. Australian
  7. 12
    A Whig. British, dated
  8. 13
    A member or supporter of the Liberal Party of Australia. Australian

Etymology

Etymology 1

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.

Etymology 2

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.

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