Synonyms

free hand

American

noun

unrestricted freedom or authority.

They gave the decorator a free hand.

free hand British

noun

unrestricted freedom to act (esp in the phrase give ( someone ) a free hand )

"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

adjective

(done) by hand without the use of guiding instruments

a freehand drawing

"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

free hand Idioms

Also, free rein. Freedom to do or decide as one sees fit. For example, The teacher gave her assistant a free hand with the class, or They gave me free rein to reorganize the department. The first expression dates from the late 1800s, the second from the mid-1900s.

Etymology

Origin of free hand

First recorded in 1925–30

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:

free hand

My free hand dangles close enough to touch the sand.

From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026

"So I tried to take a pretty free hand with it and kind of plow my own furrow."

From Barron's ● Mar. 1, 2026

He has a free hand in Iran and can move in any direction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026

The Thai air force has had a free hand bombing targets inside Cambodia, which has limited air defences and no air force of its own to speak of.

From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2025

“Aw, psh,” Ruth says, waving her free hand.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023