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liberal
1[ lib-er-uhl, lib-ruhl ]
adjective
- favorable to progress or reform, as in political or religious affairs.
Synonyms: progressive
Antonyms: reactionary
- (often initial capital letter) noting or pertaining to a political party advocating measures of progressive political reform.
- of, pertaining to, based on, or advocating liberalism, especially the freedom of the individual and governmental guarantees of individual rights and liberties.
- favorable to or in accord with concepts of maximum individual freedom possible, especially as guaranteed by law and secured by governmental protection of civil liberties.
- favoring or permitting freedom of action, especially with respect to matters of personal belief or expression:
a liberal policy toward dissident artists and writers.
- of or relating to representational forms of government rather than aristocracies and monarchies.
- free from prejudice or bigotry; tolerant:
a liberal attitude toward foreigners.
Synonyms: unprejudiced, broad-minded
- open-minded or tolerant, especially free of or not bound by traditional or conventional ideas, values, etc.
Antonyms: intolerant
- characterized by generosity and willingness to give in large amounts:
a liberal donor.
Synonyms: unstinting, munificent, openhanded, charitable, beneficent, lavish
- given freely or abundantly; generous:
a liberal donation.
- not strict or rigorous; not literal; free:
a liberal interpretation of a rule.
- of, relating to, or based on the liberal arts.
- of, relating to, or befitting a freeman.
noun
- a person of liberal principles or views, especially in politics or religion.
- (often initial capital letter) a member of a liberal party in politics, especially of the Liberal party in Great Britain.
Liberal
2[ lib-er-uhl, lib-ruhl ]
noun
- a city in SW Kansas.
Liberal
1/ ˈlɪbərəl; ˈlɪbrəl /
noun
- a member or supporter of a Liberal Party or Liberal Democrat party
adjective
- of or relating to a Liberal Party
liberal
2/ ˈlɪbrəl; ˈlɪbərəl /
adjective
- relating to or having social and political views that favour progress and reform
- relating to or having policies or views advocating individual freedom
- giving and generous in temperament or behaviour
- tolerant of other people
- abundant; lavish
a liberal helping of cream
- not strict; free
a liberal translation
- of or relating to an education that aims to develop general cultural interests and intellectual ability
noun
- a person who has liberal ideas or opinions
liberal
- A descriptive term for persons, policies, and beliefs associated with liberalism .
Derived Forms
- ˈliberally, adverb
- ˈliberalness, noun
Other Words From
- lib·er·al·ly adverb
- lib·er·al·ness noun
- an·ti·lib·er·al adjective noun
- an·ti·lib·er·al·ness noun
- half-lib·er·al adjective
- non·lib·er·al adjective
- o·ver·lib·er·al adjective
- pre·lib·er·al adjective noun
- pseu·do·lib·er·al adjective noun
- qua·si-lib·er·al adjective
- sem·i·lib·er·al adjective noun
- un·lib·er·al adjective
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of liberal1
Example Sentences
A number of conservative parental groups, including Moms for Liberty, which invited Trump to speak at its national convention in August, turned their attention to lobbying against “liberal indoctrination.”
A liberal has to tell a hundred stories, or a thousand.
Even if all liberals collectively agreed never to say "Nancy Mace" again, she can take advantage of the robust right-wing propaganda machine to get attention with hate.
While the scuffling got attention, the push into liberal political commentary caused tensions among the more traditional-minded journalists at NBC News.
That pattern is driven by young voters, Mitchell said, who “end up voting later than everyone else,” and tend to lean more liberal.
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About This Word
What does liberal mean?
Liberal means favorable to reform or progress, such as in religion or politics. Generally, a person is considered to be liberal if they support changes or reforms to something, as in The pastor was especially liberal and argued for changes to the ceremony to better fit with modern society.
Progressive is a commonly used synonym for this sense of liberal, while conservative, meaning in favor of existing conditions or restoring older ones, an antonym.
Liberal also means of, related to, based on, or supporting liberalism, a philosophy that argues for maximum individual freedoms and liberties.
Somewhat related to this, liberal can mean open minded or tolerant, as in She had a liberal attitude toward foreign immigrants.
Liberal is also used to mean not strict or not literal, as in The judge practiced a liberal interpretation of the truancy laws, often not punishing students for skipping school.
And liberal is used to describe generous giving, as in John was a liberal donor to his college.
Finally, liberal can be a synonym for abundant or ample, as in He dumped a liberal amount of sprinkles on his ice cream.
As a noun, liberal is used to refer to a person who has liberal views, especially on politics or religion. When capitalized, Liberal refers to a member of a liberal political party, such as the Liberal party of Great Britain.
Example: The prime minister faced intense criticism from the liberal members of the government, who demanded change to the traditional policies.
Where does liberal come from?
The first records of liberal come from around 1350. It ultimately comes from the Latin līberālis, meaning “befitting the free, honorable.” The emphasis of freedom is a major point of liberalism.
What is considered liberal is often subjective. It depends heavily on the beliefs or attitudes of the person using the word, especially in relation to the society or organization they belong to.
For example, in the United States the word liberal is often used to refer to the Democratic Party and its beliefs, while the Republican Party is considered conservative. However, a person from the United Kingdom might consider both parties to be conservative, as neither one has historically argued for more liberal policies found in the UK, such as universal public healthcare.
Did you know ... ?
What are some other forms related to liberal?
- liberally (adverb)
- liberalness (noun)
- antiliberal (adjective, noun)
- antiliberally (adverb)
What are some synonyms for liberal?
What are some words that share a root or word element with liberal?
What are some words that often get used in discussing liberal?
How is liberal used in real life?
Liberal is most often used to mean favorable to reform or progress, even when that is used as an insult.
I am a proud Liberal from Oklahoma – a very red state.
— Debbie Wade (@dwade828) March 6, 2010
This thing where the minority of right wing Jews in America think they somehow have the authority to excommunicate the liberal-left majority from Judaism is really tiresome. Our values are no less Jewish because we seek to apply them universally.
— Adam Serwer 🍝 (@AdamSerwer) November 21, 2019
As a liberal-leaning public educator who believes in social justice I think this is one of the stupidest takes I’ve seen on Twitter. I like 75% of these movies.
— Steven Zapata (@szilla11) April 1, 2021
Try using liberal!
Which of the following is a synonym of liberal?
A. nostalgic
B. conservative
C. progressive
D. unpredictable
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