freelancer

noun

free·​lanc·​er ˈfrē-ˌlan(t)-sər 

plural freelancers

1

: a person who pursues a profession without a long-term commitment to any one employer : freelance sense 1

hired a freelancer to write the article

… there were hundreds of photographers on the scene, some on assignment, some freelancers, most of them amateurs.

—Garrison Keillor

But while Renzo is the ultimate company man, a lifetime employee who reports to the same office every morning, Riccardo is the prototypical freelancer, a peripatetic problem-solver with five-dozen clients.

—Bruce Schoenfeld

2

: a person who acts independently without being affiliated with or authorized by an organization : freelance sense 2b

[Anthony] Grafton contrasts public intellectuals outside and inside the universities, and he takes note of today's nostalgia for the freethinkers who lived and wrote independently of deans and classrooms. But it is good to be reminded that in that golden era of freelancers such as Wilson, H. L. Mencken, and Mary McCarthy, voices like theirs were also raised in universities.

—G. W. Bowersock

Examples of freelancer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For freelancers and small business owners handling several content formats, that range reduces the need to switch workspaces. — Stackcommerce Team, PC Magazine, 1 Nov. 2026

For his magazine contributions, Dickens was famously paid by the word—and at a rate that would probably shock today’s freelancers once adjusted for inflation. — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 30 Oct. 2026

The outlet — initially organized as a nonprofit and funded at first largely by Schmidt, rather than advertising or subscriptions — hired dozens of journalists and built out a fast network of freelancers. — Max Tani, semafor.com, 25 Oct. 2026

The company launches in a few days’ time and has five staff plus freelancers and coaches for live events. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 20 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1924, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for freelancer

• enhancer
• merganser
• romancer
• ansar
• anser
• answer
• cancer
• dancer
• lancer
• anticancer
• necromancer