take liberties

idiom

1

disapproving : to make important changes to something

—usually + with

I think the movie takes too many liberties with the original story.

2

old-fashioned : to be informal and friendly toward someone in a way that is not proper

—usually + with

He was accused of taking liberties with several young women.

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

But Jane Austen adaptations take liberties all the time. —Kathleen Walsh, Glamour, 27 July 2022

Directly after The Slaughterhouse Cases, the court began to interpret the idea that liberty could not be taken away without due process to mean that the government couldn’t take liberties away unreasonably — and hence substantive due process was born. —Kenji Yoshino, Washington Post, 30 Nov. 2022

The various adaptations take liberties that push them in various storytelling directions. —Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2022

Some keyboards take liberties with the traditional layouts. —Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 28 Mar. 2022

Did the artist who carved the cross also take liberties, which only informed Nahuas would grasp? —Los Angeles Times, 28 Dec. 2021

Books are often better than their movie adaptations, and movies take liberties. —Michelle Ruiz, Vogue, 23 Dec. 2021

Brace yourself with the occasional face mask where required, but take liberties in the rest of your outfit. —Cassell Ferere, Forbes, 10 June 2021

Because the show is meant to be a fantasy version of the Regency period, Mirojnick was able to take liberties with the clothing, changing the color palette and fabrics, and refraining from bonnets. —Marie Lodi, Glamour, 24 Mar. 2021

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