freethinker

noun free·think·er \ ˈfrē-ˈthiŋ-kər \

|Updated on: 24 Jun 2018

Definition of freethinker

: a person who thinks freely or independently : one who forms opinions on the basis of reason independently of authority; especially : one who rejects or is skeptical of religious dogma

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freethinking

play \ˈfrē-ˈthiŋ-kiŋ\ noun or adjective

See freethinker defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of freethinker from the Web

Nineteenth-century freethinkers, such as Susan B. Anthony, were leading advocates of abolitionism and feminism.

— jeet heer, The New Republic, "Kanye West’s Bastardization of “Free Thinkers”," 3 May 2018
The Dill Pickle Club, North State Street at about East Chestnut Street A century ago, the Dill Pickle Club was the place to be for bohemians, freethinkers and writers, among them Ben Hecht, Carl Sandburg and Theodore Dreiser.

— meredith heagney, chicagotribune.com, "Literary landmarks: Hunting down old haunts of Chicago writers," 21 May 2018
The writing is poised and tidy as well—too tidy, in fact, for a novel whose allegiances are with rebels and freethinkers.

— sam sacks, WSJ, "The Best New Fiction," 15 Sep. 2017
For those three years, the iconoclast, freethinker and reluctant voice of a generation proclaimed faith in salvation by Jesus Christ (despite his Jewish upbringing), with lyrics that drew a line in the sand.

— jon pareles, New York Times, "Bob Dylan’s Songs for the Soul, Revisited and Redeemed," 1 Nov. 2017
The central conflict in La Belle Sauvage pits freethinkers against fanatics, which is not simply a conflict between atheists and believers.

— sarah jones, New Republic, "Philip Pullman’s War Against the Fanatics," 30 Oct. 2017
For the last three years, atheist writers, freethinkers, foreigners, religious minorities, gay rights activists and others have been terrorized and killed in Bangladesh by shadowy figures who have struck with machetes and sped off on motorbikes.

— geeta anand and julfikar ali manik, New York Times, "Bangladesh Says It Now Knows Who’s Killing the Bloggers," 8 June 2016
Noah was, even then, according to friends, a pacifist and a freethinker.

— scott cacciola, New York Times, "For Knicks’ Joakim Noah, Principled Stand Isn’t a Novelty," 2 Oct. 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'freethinker.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.