Freemason

American  

[free-mey-suhn, free-mey-] / ˈfriˌmeɪ sən, ˌfriˈmeɪ- /

noun

1. a member of a widely distributed secret order Free and Accepted Masons, having for its object mutual assistance and the promotion of brotherly love among its members.

2. (lowercase)

   1. one of a class of skilled stoneworkers of the Middle Ages, possessing secret signs and passwords.

   2. a member of a society composed of such workers, which also included honorary members accepted masons not connected with the building trades.

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Freemason ¹ British  

/ ˌfriːməˈsɒnɪk, ˈfriːˌmeɪsən /

noun

1. Sometimes shortened to: Mason.  a member of the widespread secret order, constituted in London in 1717, of Free and Accepted Masons , pledged to brotherly love, faith, and charity

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freemason ² British  

/ ˈfriːˌmeɪsən, ˌfriːməˈsɒnɪk /

noun

1. medieval history a member of a guild of itinerant skilled stonemasons, who had a system of secret signs and passwords with which they recognized each other

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Other Word Forms

• Freemasonic adjective
• freemasonic adjective

Etymology

Origin of Freemason

First recorded in 1350–1400, Freemason is from the Middle English word fremason. See free, mason

Example Sentences

During the court case, the Met offered clarifications on how it would handle data from Freemason officers.

From BBC • Feb. 24, 2026

The most paranoid anti-Masons I've encountered, either online or in the real world, have never bothered to speak to a Freemason.

From Salon • Aug. 13, 2023

Full disclosure: I became a Freemason in 2002 and a 32nd Degree Scottish Rite Freemason in 2004.

From Salon • Aug. 13, 2023

Though Freemasonry wasn’t a religion, per se, Berrow explains that to be a Freemason, one had to believe in “a supreme being.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2022

Mr Hughan obtained copies of these marks from Mr James Bubb, the first clerk of the works, and from his successor, Mr Robert Swain, and had them published in the Freemason, 13th of November 1886.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 2 "Baconthorpe" to "Bankruptcy" by Various