freelance
adjective
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L336950 on Wikidata ↗noun
- person working without long-term contract
verb
- work without a long-term contract
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈfɹiːlɑːns/ / /ˈfɹiˌlæns/
adj
Etymology: From free + lance. Coined by Walter Scott (1771–1832) in Ivanhoe (1819; see quotation) to describe a medieval mercenary warrior or "free-lance" (indicating that the lance is not sworn to any lord's services). It changed to a figurative noun around the 1860s and was recognized as a verb in 1903 by authorities such as the Oxford English Dictionary. In modern times the term has morphed into an adjective, a verb, and an adverb, as well as the derivative noun freelancer.
- Of or relating to a freelance; without a long-term employment contract.
“He was a freelance writer for several magazines.”
“Both work -- Jenny as a freelance writer from home, Marc full-time-plus as a civil engineer with a long commute. Jenny also takes care of their four sons, ages 20 months to 9 years, and homeschools the two oldest.”
noun
Etymology: From free + lance. Coined by Walter Scott (1771–1832) in Ivanhoe (1819; see quotation) to describe a medieval mercenary warrior or "free-lance" (indicating that the lance is not sworn to any lord's services). It changed to a figurative noun around the 1860s and was recognized as a verb in 1903 by authorities such as the Oxford English Dictionary. In modern times the term has morphed into an adjective, a verb, and an adverb, as well as the derivative noun freelancer.
- Someone who sells their services to clients without a long-term employment contract.
“The objector, one Millworthy, a free-lance of journalism, was not to be so easily silenced.”
“The person you are revising (the revisee) is a colleague at your own rank, or another freelance.”
- A medieval mercenary.
“I—I offered Richard the service of my Free Lances, and he refused them—I will lead them to Hull, seize on shipping, and embark for Flanders; […] Trust me, Estoteville alone has strength enough to drive all thy Free Lances into the Humber.”
verb
Etymology: From free + lance. Coined by Walter Scott (1771–1832) in Ivanhoe (1819; see quotation) to describe a medieval mercenary warrior or "free-lance" (indicating that the lance is not sworn to any lord's services). It changed to a figurative noun around the 1860s and was recognized as a verb in 1903 by authorities such as the Oxford English Dictionary. In modern times the term has morphed into an adjective, a verb, and an adverb, as well as the derivative noun freelancer.
- To work as a freelance.
- To produce or sell services as a freelance.