freestyle

1 of 2

noun

free·​style ˈfrē-ˌstī(-ə)l 

plural freestyles

1

: a competition in which the contestant is given more freedom of choice than in related events

BMX freestyle … makes its Olympic debut on Saturday.

—Gretchen Reynolds

especially : a swimming competition in which the swimmer may use any stroke

This week … she won her three best races—the 400-meter, 800-meter and 1,500-meter freestyles.

—Frank Litsky

—often used before another noun

the 200-yard freestyle relay

the women's freestyle competition

2

or freestyle stroke : a fast swimming stroke executed in a prone position with alternating overarm strokes and a flutter kick : crawl sense 2

Freestyle is the fastest of the competitive strokes.

—Ruben Guzman

… I alternate between freestyle and breaststroke, enjoying the view of the sandy beach and its swimmers.

—Bonnie Tsui

Her freestyle stroke was smooth and effortless, her arms slipping slowly, quietly in the water.

—Bob Putnam

3

: an improvised performance especially of a rap (see rap entry 5 sense 2b)

… signed Sonja to his label on the strength of a one-verse freestyle.

—Durwin Chow

The rapper was lured into a recording booth at around five … and he improvised a pitch-perfect freestyle, in one take.

—Nate Chinen

—often used before another noun

freestyle rap

… the freestyle moves of African-American and Latin dancers as they personalized the twist in the early '60s.

—Marc Myers

freestyle

2 of 2

verb

freestyled; freestyling; freestyles

1

transitive + intransitive : to improvise something (such as a song, speech, or dance)

… [rapper] Common deviated from his set lyrics and freestyled, spontaneously drawing on an endless supply of inventive rhymes that elicited wild cheers from his fans.

—Joshua Klein

… I completely forgot all of the lyrics to the song and just started freestyling.

—Utkarsh Ambudkar, quoted in The Chicago Tribune

Plans are good—if you're hosting people it is (usually) better to have a plan than to freestyle a meal for six.

—Eleanor Steafel

The trio freestyled and shouted their playful rhymes with equal parts bravado and humor.

—Cheo Hodari Coker

2

intransitive : to participate in a freestyle (see freestyle entry 1 sense 1) competition

Some of the riders were doing great just to get over the obstacles without falling. The more advanced ones though were flying and twisting through the air as they freestyled.

—Maria St. Louis-Sanchez

3

intransitive : to swim using the freestyle stroke (see freestyle entry 1 sense 2)

… lifeguards huddled in sweats to watch early-morning swimmers freestyle through the misting water.

—Laura Johnston

freestyler noun

plural freestylers

Like a number of resorts throughout the country, Mammoth recently built its freestylers a snowboard park …

—Bucky McMahon

The swimmer they watched perform there was … the best freestyler in the U.S. at distances of 200 through 1,500 meters.

—Pat Forde

Being slick with the pen and a sublime freestyler are not skills that Lola Brooke picked up overnight. Starting at eight years old, using words to express herself was an outlet …

—Desjah Altvater

Examples of freestyle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The competition program is far less varied; skateboarding is still a summer staple, joined by BMX freestyle and Moto X. Winter X Games has narrowed to skiing and snowboarding. —Michelle Bruton, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025

Like being in the corner office, swimming can largely feel like a lonesome single-person sport (the 1500m freestyle is 30 laps back and forth for over 15 minutes). —Preston Fore, Fortune, 25 June 2025

Verb

The two-minute video on Netflix’s YouTube channel also features American rapper Lil Yachty, himself a longtime K-culture fan who famously paid tribute to the iconic K-pop boy band BIGBANG (of which T.O.P is a former member) in 2016 by freestyling to their songs. —Regina Kim, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025

Some guests recited poetry, while others freestyled between sips of tea. —Lina Abascal, Los Angeles Times, 21 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

derivative of freestyle entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1913, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1927, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing freestyle

• freestyle stroke

Rhymes for freestyle

• argyle
• awhile
• beguile
• compile
• condyle
• defile
• erstwhile
• exile
• gentile
• hairstyle
• lifestyle
• meanwhile

Kids Definition

freestyle

noun

free·​style -ˌstīl 

: a competition (as a swimming race) in which the competitors are not restricted to a certain way of performing