free spirit

noun

plural free spirits

: a person who thinks and acts in an uninhibited way without worrying about normal social rules : nonconformist

Their daughter is a real free spirit.

Von der Becke thinks of himself now as a free spirit: a sort of drug-free, hard-working hippie.

—Tim Cahill

Here was a man of extraordinary sensitivity, political acumen, spiritual power, and sexual wildness; a free spirit if ever there was one.

—Alice Walker

free-spirited

ˈfrē-ˈspir-ə-təd 

adjective

Synonyms

• bohemian
• boho
• counterculturist
• deviant
• enfant terrible
• heretic
• iconoclast
• individualist
• lone ranger
• lone wolf
• loner
• maverick
• nonconformer
• nonconformist

Examples of free spirit in a Sentence

Their daughter is a real free spirit.

an artistically inclined free spirit who felt alienated and stifled while growing up in a small town

Recent Examples on the Web

In the backdrop to her work, the actress had a reputation as a free spirit, who raised her only son Luca Magnani on her own, having split from his actor father prior to his birth in 1942. —Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 28 Nov. 2024

Trending Stories Culkin’s Zen-stoner take on a free spirit that’s also a broken spirit — an accidentally spilled bit of information hints at a backstory that suggests the film’s title is earned — would be enough to recommend this. —David Fear, Rolling Stone, 29 Oct. 2024

But as an adventure-loving free spirit, Héra would much rather spend her days out in the wilderness with her horse instead of being saddled with royal responsibilities. —Charles Pulliam-Moore, The Verge, 11 Dec. 2024

The Emirates, in fairness, is perhaps not the ideal environment to hand such an attacking free spirit a first Premier League start. —Paul Taylor, The Athletic, 24 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1931, in the meaning defined above