Meanings
- uncountableFreedom of speech; the ability or right to express one's opinions, particularly (strictly) the legal right to do so without the government forbidding it via laws, but also (loosely) the ability to do so without facing social repercussions, or one's employer firing one for it, or social media sites not hosting it on their platforms, etc.
The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely shouting fire in a theater and causing a panic.
1929, Oliver Wendell Holmes (Jr.), The Dissenting Opinions of Mr. Justice Holmes, page 2343 more examples
Section 8 (c) of the act has been erroneously referred to since its passage as a free-speech provision. Actually this section permits the employer to intimidate and coerce employees in the exercise of their rights guaranteed by the act. It is not a question of free speech at all. Giving the antiunion employer an unbridled right to condemn and deride the basic rights of employees to self-organization and collective bargaining is not free speech but a license to defeat the exercise of these fundamental rights.
1953, United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, Hearings, page 3631The term free speech, which appears in this book's subtitle as well as in its text, is used more or less interchangeably with freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and freedom of expression to refer to all of the expressive rights guaranteed by the forty-five words of the First Amendment, as interpreted by the U.S. courts.
2003, Mike Godwin, Cyber Rights, The MIT Press, →ISBN, page 2Using “free speech” as a cop-out is just as intellectually dishonest and just as morally bankrupt. […] Free speech is a bedrock value in this country. But it isn’t the only one. Like all values, it must be held in tension with others, such as equality, safety and robust democratic participation.
2019 October 4, Andrew Marantz, “Free Speech Is Killing Us”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLCSynonyms: freedom of speech
- uncountableSpeech which is protected by this right; public expression of one's opinions that is, or merits being, protected from restraint or censorship.
[…] shouting fire-panic-in-theatre is not free speech at all. It is an explosive, deadly action.
1963, Supreme Court of the United States October Term, 1963, case of George Albert Rutherford against the United States of America (link)2 more examples
Saying certain things or posting fliers or writing in student or independent newspapers is not free speech but instead is sexual harassment or racial harassment.
2007, Wells Earl Draughon, While America Sleeps: How Islam, Immigration and Indoctrination Are Destroying America from Within, iUniverse, →ISBN, page 116I would argue that we must be concerned with free speech but that cyber racism is not free speech, it is racist speech that provides an opportunity to devalue part of humankind ...
2017, Fernne Brennan, Race Rights Reparations: Institutional Racism and The Law, Routledge, →ISBN
Synonyms & antonyms
nounFreedom of speech; the ability or right to express one's opinions, particularly (strictly) the legal right to do so without the government forbidding it via laws, but also (loosely) the ability to do so without facing social repercussions, or one's employer firing one for it, or social media sites not hosting it on their platforms, etc.
Translations
Ancient Greek πᾰρρησῐ́ᾱ, ἰσηγορία
- πᾰρρησῐ́ᾱ (părrhēsĭ́ā)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- ἰσηγορία (isēgoría)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- ἐλευθεροστομία (eleutherostomía)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Arabic حُرِّيَّة اَلتَّعْبِير, حُرِّيَّة الْكَلَام
- حُرِّيَّة اَلتَّعْبِير (ḥurriyyat at-taʕbīr)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- حُرِّيَّة الْكَلَامthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Bulgarian свобода на слово
- свобода на слово (svoboda na slovo)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Catalan llibertat d'expressió
- llibertat d'expressióthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Chinese Mandarin 言論自由 /言论自由
- 言論自由 /言论自由 (yánlùnzìyóu)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Czech svoboda slova, svoboda projevu
- svoboda slovathe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- svoboda projevuthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- svoboda vyjadřováníthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Danish ytringsfrihed
- ytringsfrihedthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Dutch vrijheid van meningsuiting, vrije meningsuiting
- vrijheid van meningsuitingthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- vrije meningsuitingthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Esperanto parollibereco
- parolliberecothe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Estonian sõnavabadus
- sõnavabadusthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Finnish sananvapaus
- sananvapausthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
French liberté d'expression
- liberté d'expressionthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
German freie Meinungsäußerung, Redefreiheit
- freie Meinungsäußerungthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- Redefreiheitthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Greek ελευθερία έκφρασης
- ελευθερία έκφρασης (elefthería ékfrasis)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Hebrew חופש הביטוי
- חופש הביטויthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Hindi अभिव्यक्ति की स्वतंत्रता
- अभिव्यक्ति की स्वतंत्रता (abhivyakti kī svatantratā)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Hungarian szólásszabadság
- szólásszabadságthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Icelandic málfrelsi
- málfrelsithe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Italian libertà di parola
- libertà di parolathe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Japanese 言論の自由
- 言論の自由 (genron-no jiyū)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Korean 표현의 자유
- 표현의 자유 (pyohyeonui jayu)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Latvian vārda brīvība
- vārda brīvībathe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Lithuanian žodžio laisvė
- žodžio laisvėthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Māori manawhiri kōrero
- manawhiri kōrerothe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Norwegian Bokmål ytringsfrihet
- ytringsfrihetthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Persian آزادی بیان
- آزادی بیان (âzâdi-ye bayân)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Polish wolność słowa
- wolność słowathe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Portuguese liberdade de expressão
- liberdade de expressãothe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Romanian libertatea cuvântului
- libertatea cuvântuluithe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Russian свобо́да сло́ва
- свобо́да сло́ва (svobóda slóva)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Scottish Gaelic saorsa cainnte
- saorsa cainntethe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Slovak sloboda slova
- sloboda slovathe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Spanish libertad de expresión, libertad de palabra
- libertad de expresiónthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
- libertad de palabrathe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Swahili uhuru wa maoni
- uhuru wa maonithe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Swedish yttrandefrihet
- yttrandefrihetthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Thai เสรีภาพในการพูด
- เสรีภาพในการพูด (săyree pâap nai gaan pôot)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Turkish ifade özgürlüğü
- ifade özgürlüğüthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Ukrainian свобо́да сло́ва
- свобо́да сло́ва (svobóda slóva)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Urdu آزادی گفتار
- آزادی گفتار (āzādī guftār)the right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Vietnamese tự do ngôn luận
- tự do ngôn luậnthe right to express an opinion in public (freedom of speech)
Cite this entry
free speech. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/free%20speech
“free speech.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/free%20speech. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “free speech,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/free%20speech.
Source: free speech on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.