free agent
80
3.9
- noun
- /fri ˈeɪdʒənt/
- Jargon
:
agente libre
- The star player became a free agent after his contract expired, allowing him to negotiate with any team.
- become a free agent
- free agents on teams
I may be a free agent going in for a tryout.
- I may be a free agent going in for a tryout.
- And he's, he was a free agent and then playing football for San Fran.
- I'm talking there's two of us undrafted rookie free agents.
- So I'm down to poach, You know, you're still a free agent.
Examples
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An intriguing development is the resurgence of free-agent activity.
Academic text (1991) -
Picked him up as a free agent three years ago.
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I am a free agent.
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Hey, I'm a free agent this year.
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I'm still a free agent.
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There are no good starters available as free agents this year or next.
Blog text (3) -
Legally, we are free agents as of midnight tonight.
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I find being a free agent exhilarating.
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Two of their three big free agent acquisitions ended up doing what they always do.
Blog text (3) -
Jeremy Bonderman is out there as a free agent, and the Mariners are looking at him somewhat closely.
Blog text (5)
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a person who acts independently' is directly and compositionally derivable from 'free' (able to act without constraints) + 'agent' (an actor/representative); the noun phrase simply describes an agent who is free. While specific register nuances (e.g., sports or contractual senses) exist, the core independent-actor sense is transparent and predictable to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.
Etymology
Free agent comes from sports and names a player who is not under a contract with any team. The word free shows the player can choose and sign with any club, so free agent means 'a player who can join any team'.