public square
5
4.0
- noun
- /ˈpʌblɪk skwɛr/
- Texting
:
plaza pública
- The Internet is like its own little country, and its many websites are like public squares for its thousands upon thousands of citizens.
Beautiful thing if on social media today we called that the public square.
- Beautiful thing if on social media today we called that the public square.
- And we may really battle it out behind the scenes or in in in in the public square, and that's OK.
- It has to bubble up and citizens have to start demanding that kind of change and forcing the the discussion into the public square.
- I think that once these, you know, companies become large enough and open themselves up and become basically public squares, they cannot censor what goes on it.
Examples
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Believe me, a community that becomes strong in living out the Catholic ideals gets noticed in the public square.
Blog text (20) -
Indeed, the public square can be populated by all sorts of worldviews clamoring for allegiance as Congress and the courts consider laws and legislation.
Academic text (2006) -
So what would it take for us to claim our space in the public square?
Blog text (10) -
We do need conservative voices in the public square, just as we need liberal ones.
Blog text (32) -
Without a shared experience, citizens are open to any claim and stand naked in the public square, unable to defend what they believe or deny what they do not.
Academic text (1996) -
The reasonable request by non-Christians that there is no endorsement of religion in the public square.
Blog text (32) -
Underlying the assertion that democracy will reduce terrorism is the belief that, able to participate openly in competitive politics and have their voices heard in the public square, potential terrorists and terrorist sympathizers would not need to resort to violence to achieve their goals.
Academic text (2005) -
In today's digital age, social media acts as a public square where people freely express their opinions on various issues.
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Many activists use online forums as a public square to rally support for their causes and engage in lively discussions.
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The internet serves as a modern public square where diverse voices can contribute to important conversations about society.
Synonyms
12
3.0
A discussion among many people and the media about an issue in newspapers, TV, and online
9
2.8
An open talk where many people share views about things that affect everyone
How Public
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning follows directly from combining 'public' (open to everyone) with 'square' (a town plaza or gathering place) to yield a communal space for public discussion; extending that physical gathering-place concept to an online forum is a predictable metaphor. This space-forum mapping is cross-linguistically common and therefore an average B1 learner who knows the constituents can plausibly infer the figurative sense.
Etymology
Public square used in a figurative way comes from imagining people in a town square standing and talking where everyone can see and hear them; social media and websites act like that town place. That's why it means 'an online place for public discussion'.