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Freemason

Freemason

15 7.0
A person who belongs to a worldwide group that meets in private and helps its members
  • noun
  • /ˈfriːˌmeɪsən/
translation icon : masón
  • Shortly after their arrival, the Graham brothers joined Solomon's Lodge, the recently reconstituted Freemasons of Georgia.
  • Freemasons and Rosicrucians
  • Freemasons and Jews
  • Mozart was a Freemason

And I fact, in the earlier version, there's far more mentions of Freemasons than there are Jews.

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Examples

  • The single qualification that is a basic requisite for becoming a Freemason is that one must believe in a Supreme Being.

    Academic text (1993)
  • The single quality espoused by a Freemason is trust and honesty.

    Academic text (1993)
  • I am no Freemason, nor a member of any club.

    Academic text (2009)
  • I mean, Washington really loved being a Freemason and go to the meetings.

  • Can I just say that being a Christian and Freemason is not uncommon here in Scotland?

    Blog text (22)
  • And I said, you know, I'm thinking about becoming a Freemason potentially.

  • To be a Freemason was cause for excommunication from the Roman Catholic Church.

    Academic text (2007)
  • I'd like to speak to you about the Freemasons if I might, sir.

  • The Freemasons among our Founding Fathers left us clues.

  • He decided to join the Freemason lodge to connect with like-minded individuals.

Synonyms

Mason
vsFreemason
4 6.7

A member of a group called the Freemasons who meet to help each other

emphasizes secret rituals and international tradition over moral description

Surface Forms

Freemason singular
Freemasons plural

Morphology

Freemason = free + mason (semi-transparent) = free + mason

The form 'free + mason' is transparent, but the modern sense denotes membership in a specific fraternal order rather than simply a mason who is free.

Etymology

Freemason comes from two parts: free, meaning 'allowed to travel', and mason, meaning 'stone worker'. Long ago, skilled traveling stone workers formed close groups, and the name later came to mean someone who belongs to the fraternal society with secret rituals and mutual help.