noun
freeman
FREE-mun/ˈfriːmən/
A legally free person with full civic rights.
The freeman participates in the town assembly with recognized civic rights.
Etymology
The pieces describe a person whose status is free, reflected in Old English freoman, “free-born man.” Here freedom concerns social or legal standing, rather than simply unrestricted movement.
In context
A person who has the privilege of working at any incorporated trade is said to be a freeman of that trade.
More examples
- The charter granted him the status of freeman.
- Several freemen voted in the old account.
- The historian distinguished a freeman from an enslaved person.
Forms
freeman · freemen
Similar words
- citizen
- Citizen concerns membership in a state rather than historical free status.
- freeborn
- Freeborn identifies being born free rather than acquired civic rights.