emancipation

E1M3A1N1C3I1P3A1T1I1O1N1
/ɪˌmæn.səˈpeɪ.ʃən/

noun

The act of setting free from the power of another, as from slavery, subjection, dependence, or controlling influence.

“US President Abraham Lincoln was called the Great Emancipator after issuing the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.”

Less commonScrabble 18

Meanings

nounemancipation (usually uncountable, plural emancipations)

plural emancipations

  1. uncountableusuallyThe act of setting free from the power of another, as from slavery, subjection, dependence, or controlling influence.

    As a result of the strengthening of ethnolinguistic emancipation since the second half of the twentieth century, North Saami now enjoys probably stronger legal and institutional support than any other “minor” Uralic language[.]

    2022 June 24 [2022 March 28], Luobbal Sámmol Sámmol Ánte, Jussi Ylikoski, “North Saami”, in Marianne Bakró-Nagy, Johanna Laakso, Elena Skribnik, editors, The Oxford Guide to the Uralic Languages, Oxford University Press, →DOI, →ISBN, page 147
    1 more example

    Ireland, last year, was to be paradise, if that Peri, emancipation, was but sent there; now it is a wretched, degraded, oppressed country, unless the Union be dissolved! What ever will it be the year after? So much for any certainty of right in this world!

    1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XX, in Romance and Reality. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 308

    Synonyms: manumission

  2. uncountableusuallyThe state of being thus set free; liberation (used, for example, of slaves from bondage, of a person from prejudices, of the mind from superstition, of a nation from tyranny or subjugation).

    US President Abraham Lincoln was called the Great Emancipator after issuing the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounThe act of setting free from the power of another, as from slavery, subjection, dependence, or controlling influence.

Origin

  1. Latinēmancipātiō
  2. Frenchémancipation
  3. Englishemancipation

1630, from French émancipation, from Latin ēmancipātiō. In the US, with reference to anti-slavery, abolitionism, first used in 1785 by Charles Godfrey Leland. In Britain, with reference to easing of restrictions on Catholics, in 19th century.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian еманципа́ция
  • еманципа́ция (emancipácija)act of setting free from the power of another
Catalan emancipació
  • emancipacióact of setting free from the power of another
Chinese Mandarin 解放
  • 解放 (jiěfàng)act of setting free from the power of another
Czech osvobození, emancipace
  • osvobozeníact of setting free from the power of another
  • emancipaceact of setting free from the power of another
Danish frigørelse, frigørelser
  • frigørelseact of setting free from the power of another
  • frigørelseract of setting free from the power of another
Dutch ontvoogding, emancipatie
  • ontvoogdingact of setting free from the power of another
  • emancipatieact of setting free from the power of another
Esperanto emancipiĝo
  • emancipiĝoact of setting free from the power of another
Finnish vapauttaminen, vapautus
  • vapauttaminenact of setting free from the power of another
  • vapautusact of setting free from the power of another
French émancipation
  • émancipationact of setting free from the power of another
German Emanzipation, Freilassung
  • Emanzipationact of setting free from the power of another
  • Freilassungact of setting free from the power of another
Greek χειραφέτηση
  • χειραφέτηση (cheirafétisi)act of setting free from the power of another
Hebrew אמנציפציה
  • אמנציפציה (emantsipátsya)act of setting free from the power of another
Hungarian felszabadítás, emancipáció
  • felszabadításact of setting free from the power of another
  • emancipációact of setting free from the power of another
Irish fuascailt
  • fuascailtact of setting free from the power of another
Japanese 解放
  • 解放 (kaihō)act of setting free from the power of another
Latvian emancipācija, atbrīvošana
  • emancipācijaact of setting free from the power of another
  • atbrīvošanaact of setting free from the power of another
Polish emancypacja, wyzwolenie
  • emancypacjaact of setting free from the power of another
  • wyzwolenieact of setting free from the power of another
Portuguese emancipação
  • emancipaçãoact of setting free from the power of another
Romanian emancipare
  • emancipareact of setting free from the power of another
Russian эмансипа́ция, освобожде́ние
  • эмансипа́ция (emansipácija)act of setting free from the power of another
  • освобожде́ние (osvoboždénije)act of setting free from the power of another
Spanish emancipación, manumisión
  • emancipaciónact of setting free from the power of another
  • manumisiónact of setting free from the power of another
Swedish frigörelse, emancipation
  • frigörelseact of setting free from the power of another
  • emancipationact of setting free from the power of another
Ukrainian емансипа́ція, зві́льнення
  • емансипа́ція (emansypácija)act of setting free from the power of another
  • зві́льнення (zvílʹnennja)act of setting free from the power of another
Welsh rhyddfreiniad
  • rhyddfreiniadact of setting free from the power of another
Yiddish עמאַנציפּאַציע
  • עמאַנציפּאַציע (emantsipatsye)act of setting free from the power of another

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with emancipation

All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

emancipation. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/emancipation

MLA

“emancipation.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/emancipation. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “emancipation,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/emancipation.

Source: emancipation on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.