liberty

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   The condition of being free.

   • The army is here, your liberty is assured.
   • Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that "all men are created equal"^([sic])
   • But as the philosopher Isaiah Berlin sagely pointed out, liberty for wolves means death to lambs.
2. 2

   The condition of being free from imprisonment, slavery or forced labour.

   • The prisoners gained their liberty from an underground tunnel.
3. 3

   The condition of being free to act, believe or express oneself as one chooses.

   • Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.
   • I'd gie my ſhoon frae aff my feet, / To taſte ſic fruit, I ſwear, man. / Syne let us pray, auld England may / Sure plant this far-famed tree, man; / And blythe we'll ſing, and hail the day / That gave us liberty, man.
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   1. 4

      Freedom from excessive government control.

      • The threat of terrorism to the British lies in the overreaction to it of British governments. Each one in turn clicks up the ratchet of surveillance, intrusion and security. Each one diminishes liberty.
   2. 5

      A short period when a sailor is allowed ashore.

      • We're going on a three-day liberty as soon as we dock.
   3. 6

      A breach of social convention.

      • You needn't take such liberties.
   4. 7

      A local division of government administration in medieval England.

   5. 8

      An empty space next to a group of stones of the same color.

   6. 9

      A surname.

   7. 10

      A unisex given name.

   8. 11

      A number of places in the United States, including

      A number of places in the United States, including:

   9. 12

      Used attributively to designate various items (especially textiles) sold by (or…

      Used attributively to designate various items (especially textiles) sold by (or characteristic of) the Liberty department store in Regent Street, London.

      • It had long been dismantled of the Liberty curtains, Persian rugs, and cheap Japaneseries.
      • The piano was draped in Liberty silk and so was the chimney-piece.

The neighborhood

• synonymfreedom
• neighborliberal
• neighborliberalism
• neighborliberate
• neighborlibertarian
• neighborlibertarianism
• neighborliberticidal
• neighborliberticide
• neighborlibertine