autonomy

1 the act or power of making one's own choices or decisions <the director agreed to make the film only on the condition that she be given complete autonomy for the casting> Synonyms accord, free will, choice, self-determination, volition, willRelated Words election, preference, selection; bent, devices, disposition, inclination, leaning, partiality, penchant, predilection, predisposition, proclivity, propensity, tendency; alternative, discretion, option, pick, wayNear Antonyms coercion, compulsion, constraint, duress, force, pressure

2 the state of being free from the control or power of another <finding the mother country's treatment of them oppressive and intolerable, the 13 British colonies made the momentous decision to seek autonomy> Synonyms freedom, independence, independency, liberty, self-determination, self-governance, self-government, sovereignty (also sovranty)Related Words emancipation, enfranchisement, liberation, manumission, releaseNear Antonyms captivity, enchainment, enslavement, immurement, imprisonment, incarceration, internment, subjugationAntonyms dependence (also dependance), heteronomy, subjection, unfreedom