freedom of the city
Americannoun
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nominal citizenship in a city, conferred as an honor upon important visitors.
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(formerly) official citizenship in a city, conferred upon distinguished nonresidents.
Etymology
Origin of freedom of the city
First recorded in 1765–75
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.
Belfast City Council is now considering a proposal to revoke Senator Mitchell's Freedom of the City honour, citing concerns about his links to Epstein.
From BBC
The civic honour after all four members of Sabbath were given the Freedom of the City of Birmingham, ahead of their farewell "Back to the Beginning" concert, at Villa Park on 5 July.
From BBC
His award comes after the four members of Sabbath - Ozzy, Tony Iommi, Terence "Geezer" Butler and Bill Ward - were given the freedom of the city of Birmingham, back in June.
From BBC
In 2019, Douglas joined her for an event where Zeta-Jones was given the honorary freedom of the City and County of Swansea.
From BBC
He was awarded the Freedom of the City of Glasgow in 2010.
From BBC
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.
