LIBERAL

broad, large-minded, liberal, tolerant

(adjective) showing or characterized by broad-mindedness; “a broad political stance”; “generous and broad sympathies”; “a liberal newspaper”; “tolerant of his opponent’s opinions”

liberal

(adjective) tolerant of change; not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or tradition

free, loose, liberal

(adjective) not literal; “a loose interpretation of what she had been told”; “a free translation of the poem”

big, bighearted, bounteous, bountiful, freehanded, handsome, giving, liberal, openhanded

(adjective) given or giving freely; “was a big tipper”; “the bounteous goodness of God”; “bountiful compliments”; “a freehanded host”; “a handsome allowance”; “Saturday’s child is loving and giving”; “a liberal backer of the arts”; “a munificent gift”; “her fond and openhanded grandfather”

liberal

(adjective) having political or social views favoring reform and progress

liberal, liberalist, progressive

(noun) a person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties

liberal

(noun) a person who favors an economic theory of laissez-faire and self-regulating markets

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Noun

Liberal (plural Liberals)

(politics) A political party and philosophy

(politics) A member or supporter of a Liberal Party

(Canada) A member or supporter of the Liberal Party of Canada, or its predecessors, or provincial equivalents, or their predecessors

(British) A Liberal Democrat.

(British, dated) A Whig.

Adjective

Liberal (not comparable)

Of or relating to the Liberal party, its membership, or its platform, policy, or viewpoint.

Proper noun

Liberal

An unincorporated community in Spencer County, Indiana, United States.

A city, the county seat of Seward County, Kansas, United States.

A small city in Barton County, Missouri, United States.

An unincorporated community in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States.

Anagrams

• Braille, Briella, braille

Etymology

Adjective

liberal (comparative more liberal, superlative most liberal)

(now, rare, outside, set phrases) 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; willing to give unsparingly.

Ample, abundant; generous in quantity.

(obsolete) Unrestrained, licentious.

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

(politics) Open to political or social changes and reforms associated with either classical or modern liberalism.

Antonyms

• conservative

Hyponyms

• small-l liberal

Noun

liberal (plural liberals)

One with liberal views, supporting individual liberty (see Wikipedia's article on Liberalism).

(US) Someone left-wing; one with a left-wing ideology.

A supporter of any of several liberal parties.

(UK) One who favors individual voting rights, human and civil rights, and laissez-faire markets (also called "classical liberal"; compare libertarian).

Coordinate terms

• moderate, conservative, progressive, libertarian, centrist

Anagrams

• Braille, Briella, braille

Source: Wiktionary


Lib"er*al, a. Etym: [F. libéral, L. liberalis, from liber free; perh. akin to libet, lubet,it pleases, E. lief. Cf. Deliver.]

1. Free by birth; hence, befitting a freeman or gentleman; refined; noble; independent; free; not servile or mean; as, a liberal ancestry; a liberal spirit; liberal arts or studies. " Liberal education." Macaulay. " A liberal tongue." Shak.

2. Bestowing in a large and noble way, as a freeman; generous; bounteous; open-handed; as, a liberal giver. " Liberal of praise." Bacon. Infinitely good, and of his good As liberal and free as infinite. Milton.

3. Bestowed in a large way; hence, more than sufficient; abundant; bountiful; ample; profuse; as, a liberal gift; a liberal discharge of matter or of water. His wealth doth warrant a liberal dower. Shak.

4. Not strict or rigorous; not confined or restricted to the literal sense; free; as, a liberal translation of a classic, or a liberal construction of law or of language.

5. Not narrow or contracted in mind; not selfish; enlarged in spirit; catholic.

6. Free to excess; regardless of law or moral restraint; licentious. " Most like a liberal villain." Shak.

7. Not bound by orthodox tenets or established forms in political or religious philosophy; independent in opinion; not conservative; friendly to great freedom in the constitution or administration of government; having tendency toward democratic or republican, as distinguished from monarchical or aristocratic, forms; as, liberal thinkers; liberal Christians; the Liberal party. I confess I see nothing liberal in this " order of thoughts," as Hobbes elsewhere expresses it. Hazlitt.

Note: Liberal has of, sometimes with, before the thing bestowed, in before a word signifying action, and to before a person or object on which anything is bestowed; as, to be liberal of praise or censure; liberal with money; liberal in giving; liberal to the poor. The liberal arts. See under Art.

– Liberal education, education that enlarges and disciplines the mind and makes it master of its own powers, irrespective of the particular business or profession one may follow.

Syn.

– Generous; bountiful; munificent; beneficent; ample; large; profuse; free.

– Liberal, Generous. Liberal is freeborn, and generous is highborn. The former is opposed to the ordinary feelings of a servile state, and implies largeness of spirit in giving, judging, acting, etc. The latter expresses that nobleness of soul which is peculiarly appropriate to those of high rank, -- a spirit that goes out of self, and finds its enjoyment in consulting the feelings and happiness of others. Generosity is measured by the extent of the sacrifices it makes; liberality, by the warmth of feeling which it manifests.

Lib"er*al, n.

Definition: One who favors greater freedom in political or religious matters; an opponent of the established systems; a reformer; in English politics, a member of the Liberal party, so called. Cf. Whig.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

28 April 2024

POLYGENIC

(adjective) of or relating to an inheritable character that is controlled by several genes at once; of or related to or determined by polygenes


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Coffee Trivia

Some 16th-century Italian clergymen tried to ban coffee because they believed it to be “satanic.” However, Pope Clement VII loved coffee so much that he lifted the ban and had coffee baptized in 1600.

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