liberal
651
3.9
- noun
- /ˈlɪbərəl/
:
liberal
- Why are young liberals abandoning free speech?
- liberals and conservatives
- liberals and progressives
- moderate liberals
Why are young liberals abandoning free speech?
- Why are young liberals abandoning free speech?
- Well, a shallow take would be that liberals view people as individuals.
- So limitation of veto was what the Liberals decided to do.
- I mean, yes, even liberals didn't think it was the wrong thing.
Examples
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Well, a shallow take would be that liberals view people as individuals.
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We're all liberals here.
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What else have our liberal teachers told us that are lies?
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We're all generally sort of liberal, anti war, this sort of thing.
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Creating things is a fundamentally liberal proposition.
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Yesterday, I was a respected Jewish liberal.
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The Freedom Riders, my fine young man, were a group of concerned liberals from up north, all working together, just like we are here.
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This was done by the do-gooders, the liberals, the people who wanted to improve society.
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Therefore, it was doubly important for liberals to contain the church's social power.
Academic text (1999) -
As a liberal, she advocates for social justice and equality for all individuals.
Synonyms
105
5.1
A person who supports social and political change to make society fairer
42
9.8
A person who supports social equality and more government help
7
7.5
A person who supports strong personal rights and wants the government to not interfere in private choices
1
7.0
A person who supports political freedom, social change and basic rights
A person who strongly supports social change and personal freedoms
Antonyms
Idioms
A saying that some people who call themselves liberal may show authoritarian views when challenged
Compounds
25
3.7
College or university studies that teach broad knowledge and thinking skills across subjects like literature and history
11
3.6
A UK political party in the centre that supports liberal social policies and reforms to help working people
- Literature
3
7.7
A group of people with liberal views who have more money, status, and influence
- Offensive
2
9.4
A rich person who supports liberal ideas but is out of touch with ordinary people
How Progressive
Surface Forms
Morphology
liberal = liber + al
The political sense relates to the idea of 'freedom' (liber-) and is recognizable if learners know related words (liberty, liberate), but the full political meaning is somewhat abstract.
Etymology
Liberal comes from the Latin liber meaning 'free', the same root as liberty, and it grew to mean someone who wants more freedom, reform, and protection of individual rights, so a political liberal supports social progress and civil liberties.