liberate

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verb lib·er·ate \ ˈli-bə-ˌrāt \

Definition of liberate

liberated; liberating

transitive verb

1 :to set at liberty :free; specifically :to free (something, such as a country) from domination by a foreign power

2 :to free from combination

liberate the gas by adding acid

3 :to take or take over illegally or unjustly

material liberated from a nearby construction site
—Thorne Dreyer

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liberator

play \ˈli-bə-ˌrā-tər\ noun

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liberatory

play \ˈli-b(ə-)rə-ˌtȯr-ē\ adjective

See liberate defined for English-language learners

See liberate defined for kids

Examples of liberate in a Sentence

Rebels fought to liberate the country.
Soldiers liberated the hostages from their captors.
Laptop computers could liberate workers from their desks.
He was using materials that he had liberated from a construction site.

Recent Examples of liberate from the Web

Iraqi officials often declare areas liberated before the fighting has completely ended, and the militants have been known to carry out surprise counterattacks.

— Bloomberg.com, "Iraq Says 90 Percent of Tal Afar Retaken From IS," 26 Aug. 2017
So Hilal, after exiting Pershing and the CP board in January 2016, hatched a plan to liberate Harrison from CP.

— shawn tully, Fortune, "Google Is Expanding Its Public Wi-Fi Program to a Second Country in Asia," 25 Aug. 2017
In contrast, the president told close aides that he felt liberated by his news conference.

— Alaska Dispatch News, "President opens breach with GOP, military and industry," 17 Aug. 2017
Their first order of business: Liberating from state custody the gifted vault-breacher Joe Bang, played by a tattooed, drawling Daniel Craig, in what ends up as a memorable departure from his other career as superspy James Bond.

— mike scott, NOLA.com, "'Logan Lucky' review: Is Steven Soderbergh laughing with Southerners or at us?," 16 Aug. 2017
Dawson liberated himself by asking to be put on waivers by the Browns.

— vahe gregorian, kansascity, "Hail to The Chief: ‘I’m not going to stop living,’ says Hall of Famer Len Dawson," 11 Aug. 2017
That really came out of Che wanting to be liberated from the script.

— geoff edgers, chicagotribune.com, "Michael Che and Colin Jost are back for more Trump jokes, whether they like it or not," 8 Aug. 2017
Picture Perfect / Splash News Newly liberated from his grueling year-long Purpose Tour, Justin Bieber has been enjoying some much needed time off.

— liza corsillo, GQ, "Justin Bieber Can Do So Much Better Than Free Hotel Slippers," 2 Aug. 2017
The name St. Peter in Chains derives from a painting by 17th-century Spanish artist Bartolomé Esteban Murillo of an angel liberating St. Peter from prison.

— jeff suess, Cincinnati.com, "Our History: Storied cathedral noted for its architecture," 26 July 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of liberate

Latin liberatus, past participle of liberare, from liber — see ¹liberal

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1623

See Words from the same year

liberate Synonyms

Synonyms

discharge, disenthrall (also disenthral), emancipate, enfranchise, enlarge, free, loose, loosen, manumit, release, spring, unbind, uncage, unchain, unfetter

Antonyms

bind, confine, enchain, fetter, restrain

Related Words

bail (out), deliver, parole, ransom, redeem, rescue, save; adrift, disembarrass, disencumber, disengage, disentangle, extricate; unshackle

Near Antonyms

handcuff, manacle, shackle, trammel; commit, immure, imprison, incarcerate, intern, jail, lock (up); conquer, enslave, subdue, subjugate

Synonym Discussion of liberate

free, release, liberate, emancipate, manumit mean to set loose from restraint or constraint. free implies a usually permanent removal from whatever binds, confines, entangles, or oppresses.

- freed the animals from their cages

release suggests a setting loose from confinement, restraint, or a state of pressure or tension, often without implication of permanent liberation.

- released his anger on a punching bag

liberate stresses particularly the resulting state of liberty.

- liberated their country from the tyrant

emancipate implies the liberation of a person from subjection or domination.

- labor-saving devices emancipated us from household drudgery

manumit implies emancipation from slavery.

- the document manumitted the slaves

LIBERATE Defined for English Language Learners

liberate

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verb

Definition of liberate for English Language Learners

: to free (someone or something) from being controlled by another person, group, etc.
: to give freedom or more freedom to (someone)
: to take or steal (something)