Freemason

[ free-mey-suhn, free-mey- ]

noun

1. a member of a widely distributed secret order Free and Accepted Masons, having for its object mutual assistance and the promotion of brotherly love among its members.
2. (lowercase) History/Historical.
   1. one of a class of skilled stoneworkers of the Middle Ages, possessing secret signs and passwords.
   2. a member of a society composed of such workers, which also included honorary members accepted masons not connected with the building trades.

freemason

¹

/ ˈfriːˌmeɪsən; ˌfriːməˈsɒnɪk /

noun

1. medieval history a member of a guild of itinerant skilled stonemasons, who had a system of secret signs and passwords with which they recognized each other

Freemason

²

/ ˌfriːməˈsɒnɪk; ˈfriːˌmeɪsən /

noun

1. a member of the widespread secret order, constituted in London in 1717, of Free and Accepted Masons , pledged to brotherly love, faith, and charity Sometimes shortened toMason

Derived Forms

• freemasonic, adjective
• Freemasonic, adjective

Other Words From

• free·ma·son·ic [free-m, uh, -, son, -ik], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Freemason¹

First recorded in 1350–1400, Freemason is from the Middle English word fremason. See free, mason

Example Sentences

In the years immediately after the American Revolution, rumors and hoaxes circulated about dark plots by the Illuminati and Freemasons, suggesting those secret organizations wanted to control the republic.

From Seattle Times

All are members of the world’s largest secret society, the Freemasons—a group whose members include some of the world’s most influential people and whose secretive rituals have persisted for centuries.

From National Geographic

Mr Bongo has also been criticised over his prominent role in the Freemasons - a society whose Gabonese chapter he led, as lodge master.

From BBC

The Washington Monument was built by Freemasons; therefore, it's Satanic and needs to be destroyed.

From Salon

It's an old villain: the fraternal order of Freemasons, whose origins go back to stonemason guilds of the 13th century, and which later became a center of Enlightenment thought and leadership in the 18th century.

From Salon