freeload

[free-lohd, -lohd]

See more synonyms for freeload on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object) Informal.

to take advantage of others for free food, entertainment, etc.

verb (used with object)

to get by freeloading: He freeloaded several meals a week.

Origin of freeload

1950–55, Americanism; back formation from freeloader (free + load + -er¹)

Related formsfree·load·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for freeload

chisel, scrounge, sponge, bum, cadge, leech, mooch

Examples from the Web for freeload

Contemporary Examples of freeload

Hordes of relatives and political favor seekers were in mortal peril if they arrived to freeload after dark.
Washington Was Broke? Why Founding Fathers Were Strapped for Cash
Willard Sterne Randall
February 20, 2012

Historical Examples of freeload

He found himself breathing heavily, despite the freeload conditions.
Tight Squeeze
Dean Charles Ing

British Dictionary definitions for freeload

freeload

verb

(intr) slang to act as a freeloader; sponge

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