Main Entry: free association

Function: noun

Date: 1899

1 a : the expression (as by speaking or writing) of the content of consciousness without censorship as an aid in gaining access to unconscious processes especially in psychoanalysis b : the reporting of the first thought that comes to mind in response to a given stimulus (as a word)
2 : an idea or image elicited by free association
3 : a method using free association

— free–as·so·ci·ate \ˌfrē-ə-ˈsō-s(h)ē-ˌāt\ intransitive verb

— free–as·so·ci·at·ive \-s(h)ē-ˌā-tiv, -shə-tiv\ adjective