as in nontraditional
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Recent Examples of free-spirited
Bader especially shines as an extroverted, free-spirited travel journalist, while Molly Shannon and Alan Ruck fully utilize their limited screen time as Poppy's eccentric parents.
—
Tiffany Kelly, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Jan. 2026
Beach weddings and backyard events are well-suited to boho and free-spirited pieces, so try a strapless or halter design with details like ruffles and rosettes.
—Alison Syrett Cleary, Glamour, 6 Jan. 2026
An early architect of the cult of celebrity, Bardot masterfully harnessed the energy of the Swinging Sixties, framing herself as a free-spirited embodiment of a changing world.
—Isobel Thompson, Vogue, 28 Dec. 2025
Her free-spirited performance in the 1956 film, shot by her husband Roger Vadim, marked a decisive break from the demure heroines of the previous era.
—Ingrid Melander, USA Today, 28 Dec. 2025
And God Created Woman, in the role of a free-spirited 18-year-old whose natural sensuality stirred up passions and jealousies in the then simple fishing village.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 28 Dec. 2025
Skye and Billy’s progenitors, by contrast, are revealed to have been free-spirited and independent-minded people who simply left out lots of their complicated, peripatetic story.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2025
Jeon Do-yeon (Crash Course in Romance, Kill Boksoon) stars as free-spirited art teacher Ahn Yun-su.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 5 Dec. 2025
This change sparked a quiet cultural shift, and a mix of beach lovers, nature enthusiasts, and free-spirited travelers soon followed.
—Jade Moyano, Travel + Leisure, 30 Nov. 2025
Tiffany Kelly, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Jan. 2026
Beach weddings and backyard events are well-suited to boho and free-spirited pieces, so try a strapless or halter design with details like ruffles and rosettes.
—Alison Syrett Cleary, Glamour, 6 Jan. 2026
An early architect of the cult of celebrity, Bardot masterfully harnessed the energy of the Swinging Sixties, framing herself as a free-spirited embodiment of a changing world.
—Isobel Thompson, Vogue, 28 Dec. 2025
Her free-spirited performance in the 1956 film, shot by her husband Roger Vadim, marked a decisive break from the demure heroines of the previous era.
—Ingrid Melander, USA Today, 28 Dec. 2025
And God Created Woman, in the role of a free-spirited 18-year-old whose natural sensuality stirred up passions and jealousies in the then simple fishing village.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 28 Dec. 2025
Skye and Billy’s progenitors, by contrast, are revealed to have been free-spirited and independent-minded people who simply left out lots of their complicated, peripatetic story.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2025
Jeon Do-yeon (Crash Course in Romance, Kill Boksoon) stars as free-spirited art teacher Ahn Yun-su.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 5 Dec. 2025
This change sparked a quiet cultural shift, and a mix of beach lovers, nature enthusiasts, and free-spirited travelers soon followed.
—Jade Moyano, Travel + Leisure, 30 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for free-spirited
Adjective
-
Several area school districts have also either closed or moved to nontraditional instruction in the wake of the extremely cold temperatures in the region.—
Leo Bertucci,
Louisville Courier Journal,
26 Jan. 2026
-
To stay ahead, researchers are investing in nontraditional therapies, many of which work in fundamentally different ways than standard antibiotics.—
André O. Hudson,
The Conversation,
21 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Throughout, the out-there design has been paired with state-of-the-art tech and security upgrades.—
Tori Latham,
Robb Report,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Wilde can turn the most out-there line into an afterthought.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
In this autofictional novel, Huisman describes growing up in Paris with her beautiful, bipolar mother and iconoclastic, flamboyant father.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Jan. 2026
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If its absence speaks obliquely to the Dadaist disregard for aesthetic permanence, its iconography—and its iconoclastic mordancy—echoes throughout his entire corpus.—
Ara H. Merjian,
Artforum,
1 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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As such, the city takes on its own distinctively sooty, nonconformist character.—
Rosalyn Wikeley,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Jan. 2026
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In an environment like this, choosing not to speak can be as nonconformist, and perhaps even as difficult, as open dissent.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
27 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The design was by aviation legend Burt Rutan, known for his bold and often maverick creations.—
Jacopo Prisco,
CNN,
27 Jan. 2023
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Sinema has modeled her political approach on the maverick style of the late Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, who alienated the grassroots of his party by sometimes crossing the aisle to work with Democrats.—
Time,
Time,
23 Jan. 2023
Adjective
-
In Virginia, a dissident hinterland landowner named Nathaniel Bacon led a revolt by aggrieved Colonists that torched the English provincial capital at Jamestown.—
Peter C. Mancall,
The Conversation,
9 Jan. 2026
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After hundreds of thousands of opposition protesters took to the streets in April 2002, Chavez was briefly ousted in a coup by dissident military officers and opposition figures, who installed a new president, businessman Pedro Carmona.—
James Trapani,
Fortune,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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This heretical policy gets some support from yet another rigid convention, that of credits, which separates directors from screenwriters.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
22 Jan. 2026
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That’s because The Carpenter’s Son is not only gruesomely horror-leaning, but it’s based on the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, which some deem heretical or even blasphemous.—
Barry Levitt,
Time,
14 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Free-spirited.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/free-spirited. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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