libertarian

play

noun lib·er·tar·i·an \ˌli-bər-ˈter-ē-ən, -ˈte-rē-\

Definition of libertarian

1 : an advocate of the doctrine of free will
2a : a person who upholds the principles of individual liberty especially of thought and actionb capitalized : a member of a political party advocating libertarian principles

libertarian

adjective

libertarianism

play \ˌli-bər-ˈter-ē-ə-ˌni-zəm, -ˈte-rē-\ noun

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Recent Examples of libertarian from the Web

Those conservatives who flinch from supporting Trump come from differing strands of conservatism, ranging from paleoconservatives to libertarians to neo-conservatives.

— jeet heer, New Republic, "Why Conservative Intellectuals Are Pledging Loyalty to General Trump", 31 May 2017
Privacy and Security Civil libertarians and privacy activists have friends in high places again.

— wired news report, WIRED, "Election Spawns New Hope for Tech", 8 Nov. 2006

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