free

Available without paying any money.

• The tickets are free.
• They offer free delivery on large orders.
• Is breakfast free for hotel guests?

Similar words: complimentary

Common phrases: free entry, free delivery, free sample

Available because nobody is using it or because you are not busy.

• Is this seat free?
• I am free after lunch.
• We found a free table by the window.

Similar words: available, unoccupied

Opposites: occupied, busy

Common phrases: free seat, free room, free this evening

Able to move or go where you want, without being held or trapped.

• The bird is free now.
• After ten years in prison, she was finally free.
• The horses are free to run across the fields.

How to use it: free to + verb (The animals are free to roam.)

Similar words: unconfined, unrestrained

Opposites: captive, trapped

Common phrases: free to roam, free bird, free to go

Without rules that unfairly limit what people can do, say, or use.

• We live in a free country.
• The law protects free speech.
• Free software lets users share and change its code.

Similar words: unrestricted

Opposites: restricted

Common phrases: free country, free speech, free software

Without duties or worries that prevent you from doing what you want.

• On holiday, I feel completely free.
• She enjoyed a day free of responsibilities.
• With the work finished, we felt free again.

How to use it: free from/of something (For one week, I was free from all responsibilities.)

Similar words: carefree, unburdened

Common phrases: free of worries, free from responsibilities, feel free

Clear of anything that stops movement or passage.

• The water needs a free passage.
• Keep the entrance free of obstacles.
• The pipe is now free from anything blocking it.

How to use it: free of/from something (Make sure the pipe is free of blockages.)

Similar words: clear, unobstructed

Opposites: blocked, obstructed

Common phrases: free passage, free flow, free of blockages

Without paying any money.

• Children travel free.
• We got these tickets free.
• Hotel guests can use the pool free.

Similar words: for nothing, free of charge

Common phrases: travel free, eat free, get something free

To let someone or something leave a prison, cage, or other place holding them.

• They freed the birds.
• Firefighters freed him from the damaged car.
• Will the government free the prisoners?

How to use it: free someone/something from something (They freed the dog from the trap.)

Similar words: release, liberate

Opposites: imprison, capture

Common phrases: free a prisoner, free someone from something, free a bird