free speech

noun

: speech that is protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

also : the right to such speech

… speakers were allowed to exercise their constitutional right of free speech …

—Harold Ickes

Examples of free speech in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The social media companies, which filed separate lawsuits in federal court, cited their 1st Amendment right to free speech and the Communications Decency Act, which protects online platforms from being sued over content posted by third parties. — Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026

Regarding the walkout, Dizon said New Trier supports students’ right to organize and to free speech. — Claire Murphy, Chicago Tribune, 5 Nov. 2026

Nuance gets lost One of the main problems with free speech is contested language. — Mark Rice-Oxley, Christian Science Monitor, 3 Nov. 2026

In the annual campus free speech rankings conducted by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, only three of the 15 California public institutions surveyed made into the top half of the 262 universities ranked this year. — Tarini Mehta, Sacbee.com, 25 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1765, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for free speech

• beseech
• impeach
• outreach
• beach
• beech
• bleach
• breach
• breech
• each
• keech
• leach
• leech

Kids Definition

free speech

noun

: speech that is protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

also : the right to such speech

Legal Definition

free speech

noun

1

: speech that is protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

setting off an alarm bell is not free speech

—A. M. Dershowitz

2

: freedom of speech

an unconstitutional restraint on free speech

—National Law Journal