SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
liberalism
noun
A political tradition emphasizing individual freedom, civil liberties, and openness to reform.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Tradition centered on liberty
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topLiberalism includes differing traditions. It is not simply interchangeable with every form of progressivism or free-market economics.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See liberalism in use
The seminar compared different accounts of liberalism and the freedoms each emphasized.
A speaker discussing liberalism emphasized individual freedom, civil liberties, and the possibility of reform when established arrangements restricted those freedoms.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license