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Synonyms

civil liberty

American  

noun

  1. the freedom of a citizen to exercise customary rights, as of speech or assembly, without unwarranted or arbitrary interference by the government.

  2. such a right as guaranteed by the laws of a country, as in the U.S. by the Bill of Rights.


civil liberty British  

noun

  1. the right of an individual to certain freedoms of speech and action

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of civil liberty

First recorded in 1635–45

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

But civil liberty groups are worried that its accuracy is yet to be fully established, and point to cases such as Shaun Thompson's.

From BBC May 25, 2024

When Einstein fled Germany he fled the poison of nationalism and longed for a country of civil liberty and tolerance.

From Salon Feb. 24, 2024

Locke also differentiates between natural liberty, which grows out of natural law, and civil liberty, which is the product of governance by a commonwealth.

From Textbooks Jun. 15, 2022

Indeed, civil liberty groups have lined up to condemn the Care Courts proposal.

From Washington Post May 11, 2022

Thus they suffered and they died, and in so suffering and dying they constructed a new basis of civil liberty.

From Church and State as Seen in the Formation of Christendom by T. W. (Thomas William) Allies

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