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noun

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective liberal contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of liberal are bountiful, generous, and munificent. While all these words mean "giving or given freely and unstintingly," liberal suggests openhandedness in the giver and largeness in the thing or amount given.

a teacher liberal with her praise

When could bountiful be used to replace liberal?

The words bountiful and liberal are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, bountiful suggests lavish, unremitting giving or providing.

children spoiled by bountiful presents

When is generous a more appropriate choice than liberal?

The synonyms generous and liberal are sometimes interchangeable, but generous stresses warmhearted readiness to give more than size or importance of the gift.

a generous offer of help

In what contexts can munificent take the place of liberal?

While the synonyms munificent and liberal are close in meaning, munificent suggests a scale of giving appropriate to lords or princes.

a munificent foundation grant

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 liberal
Adjective
Wu, an unabashed liberal, now could be following those legendary mayors with a resounding win against Kraft. Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 6 Sep. 2025 Gebbia — a billionaire entrepreneur who was long considered a Silicon Valley liberal — said his shift began around 2021, when the Biden administration’s handling of the southern border left him deeply concerned. Heather Hunter, The Washington Examiner, 3 Sep. 2025
Noun
When the Soviet Union collapsed, Atlanticists assumed that liberal democracy would naturally extend to the ends of the earth. Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025 Burr first described going to the island country of Bahrain — which is more socially liberal than Saudi Arabia — where a customs agent immediately clocked his anxiety about doing stand-up in the region and gave him grief about it. James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for liberal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for liberal
Adjective
  • Advertisement Democrats are also facing pressure from their progressive wing to hold firm after what many saw as a surrender earlier this year, when centrist Democrats joined Republicans to pass a funding extension without concessions.
    Nik Popli, Time, 1 Oct. 2025
  • Even progressive critics from the party’s activist wing are applauding Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, who are insisting that any government spending package must extend health care subsidies that are set to expire at the year’s end.
    Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The Barnshaws allowed for a generous 90-day close, and John had prepared everything for the young couple.
    Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
  • Loewe features a generous beach club, six cabins, three pools, an elevator, and a gym.
    Tristan Rutherford, Robb Report, 26 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • OpenAI’s partnerships with major companies and its plans to change its corporate structure have drawn the scrutiny of regulators, including the attorneys general of California and Delaware, who oversee charitable organizations that operate or are incorporated in their states.
    Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025
  • The defense then played an 11-minute video highlighting Combs’ charitable work and life as a father of seven.
    Rolling Stone, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Tyler Robinson, 22, an extreme leftist who hated Kirk, has been charged with Kirk’s murder.
    Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 27 Sep. 2025
  • In his Monday monologue, Kimmel took on right-wing pundits who were looking to frame the shooter who killed pundit Charlie Kirk as a leftist, when the alleged killer’s actual motivation is still unclear.
    Michael Schneider, Variety, 18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • But modern dentists are skeptical as to how effective this practice actually is at improving oral health.
    Hannah Yasharoff, USA Today, 3 Oct. 2025
  • Netflix's modern retelling of the Biblical story of Ruth and Boaz, set in the tiny Tennessee town of Pegram, recently hit the global streaming platform.
    Katie Nixon, Nashville Tennessean, 3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Toasts were drunk, although notably with orange juice given President Xi Jinping’s crackdown on excessive official consumption at the sort of functions that were once lubricated with plentiful bai jiu spirit.
    Matthew Tostevin, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
  • What’s more, zinc is plentiful, has a low environmental impact, and contributes to the battery’s high volumetric capacity.
    Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Jesus and Belania shriek and thank Christian, who stands there looking like a benevolent fashion angel bestowing them with good luck.
    Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2025
  • To achieve excellence in AI, nations need the compute, but also chip production, AI talent, workforce and corporate adoption, benevolent government regulation, and a thriving ecosystem of AI startups.
    John Koetsier, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Speaking with The Athletic last month, Niebla labeled him a present-day version of former Cleveland reliever Andrew Miller, the hard-throwing lefty who made four multi-inning appearances in the 2016 World Series and helped revolutionize modern bullpen usage.
    Dennis Lin, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
  • But according to both Boone and Fried, the lefty was only ever going to face one batter in that top of the seventh.
    Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Liberal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/liberal. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.

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