as in kook
a person who forms his or her own opinions about important subjects (such as religion and politics) instead of accepting what other people say
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of freethinker
Rasoulof has become very good at identifying fellow freethinkers.
—
Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 27 Nov. 2024
Some were fleeing San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake, while others just wanted to commune with like-minded freethinkers.
—Lizbeth Scordo, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Nov. 2024
By this time, however, even in cases where freethinkers were convicted of blasphemy, judges appeared to offer leniency.
—Kristina M. Lee, The Conversation, 18 Oct. 2024
The boys, including brilliant freethinker Melchior (Marshall) and his deaf friend Moritz (Joseph Saraceni), suffer through rote Latin learning with little room for creative thought.
—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 2 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for freethinker
Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 27 Nov. 2024
Some were fleeing San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake, while others just wanted to commune with like-minded freethinkers.
—Lizbeth Scordo, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Nov. 2024
By this time, however, even in cases where freethinkers were convicted of blasphemy, judges appeared to offer leniency.
—Kristina M. Lee, The Conversation, 18 Oct. 2024
The boys, including brilliant freethinker Melchior (Marshall) and his deaf friend Moritz (Joseph Saraceni), suffer through rote Latin learning with little room for creative thought.
—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 2 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for freethinker
Recent Examples of Synonyms for freethinker
Noun
-
Not the crazy aunt/spell-casting kook who’s going to be film fans’ top Halloween costume this year.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
9 Aug. 2025
-
Aster is no longer offering a twist on things that really took place but on fantasies that occurred only in the imaginations of right-wing kooks.—
Nate Jones,
Vulture,
18 July 2025
Noun
-
Finally, there’s Barry weirdo Anthony Carrigan.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
25 Sep. 2025
-
But most Diavel enthusiasts are moto weirdos who like their bikes to be one of a kind and fast as hell.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
17 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
In a sane world, someone who claimed that one of the most beneficial accomplishments in human history — the polio vaccine — did more harm than good would be seen as a dangerous crackpot.—
U T Editorial Board,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Most researchers considered that a crackpot theory.—
Gregory Barber,
Quanta Magazine,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But this documentary shows us Novak as the fiercely independent iconoclast who left Hollywood on her own terms.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
25 Aug. 2025
-
Even the possibility of Stern going away is a signal of how things have changed for the iconoclast.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
For Mimi Pond, the desire to do a book about the Mitford sisters – six larger-than-life British eccentrics (and one brother) who created a stir in both British and American culture – was obvious.—
Erik Pedersen,
Oc Register,
5 Sep. 2025
-
For decades, sovereign citizens largely flew under the radar in Australia as relatively harmless eccentrics with a special interest in conspiracy theories.—
Hilary Whiteman,
CNN Money,
29 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Indeed, exercise is for everyone, from toddlers to codgers.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
23 May 2025
-
For older codgers like me who prefer golf clubs to nightclubs, a serene and charming alternative is the city of La Quinta, best known for its incomparable golf courses at PGA West and the historic La Quinta Resort & Club, another redolent whiff of Hollywood’s glorious days gone by.—
David Weiss,
Forbes.com,
8 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Based on actual events, Eden features a starry cast playing a disparate group of rugged individualists who all find themselves in the Galapagos in the early 20th century, each abandoning society in the hopes of creating a utopia.—
Will Leitch,
Vulture,
22 Aug. 2025
-
Although Americans are individualists, we’re still expected to go home for the holidays and to cite our parents as our greatest sources of inspiration.—
Anesce Dremen,
Longreads,
3 July 2025
Noun
-
Henry Jaglom, the maverick auteur who crafted deeply intimate and unconventional films that explored the intricacies of relationships and the quirkiness of human behavior, has died.—
Chris Koseluk,
HollywoodReporter,
24 Sep. 2025
-
Jazz is an art form with an outsized share of mavericks, rebels, and creative dissidents who’ve built careers by blazing their own particular paths.—
Andrew Gilbert,
Mercury News,
19 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Freethinker.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/freethinker. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share