a shape having an irregular contour, chiefly used in nonrepresentational art and industrial design.
Linguistics. a linguistic form that can occur by itself, as fire, book, or run.
characterized by free form.
free-form sculpture.
not organized or planned in a conventional way.
a free-form international conglomerate.
encouraged to function or evolve without advance planning; spontaneous.
free-form management.
First recorded in 1945–50
First recorded in 1950–55
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“They look like paintings to me. I’ve been drawing them since I was a kid. They’re free form and always flowing, moving. It’s that dream state.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2023
Slab pies and galettes are rustic and free form, but that doesn't mean they're ugly.
From Salon • Oct. 3, 2021
Many were drawn to slam poetry’s free form, which rewards wordplay and can be less intimidating for those with no formal education.
From Washington Post • Dec. 28, 2018
For one moment, there is only the molten dawn sun lighting the sky a poet red and the air racing cooly past him as he drops in free form flight.
From Slate • Feb. 19, 2018
It is through their agency that the soil may lose some of its nitrogen in the "free" form.
From Manures and the principles of manuring by Aikman, Charles Morton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
