freestyle
Americannoun
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freestyles
plural
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Swimming.
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a competition in which any of the standard strokes may be used, according to the swimmer's choice.
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the crawl.
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Wrestling. a style of wrestling in which the contestants are permitted to trip, tackle, and use holds below the waist.
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a sports performance or routine featuring relatively free, unrestricted movement, or intended to demonstrate an individual's special skills or style, such as in figure skating, gymnastics, surfing, or skateboarding.
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Also called freestyle rapping. Also called freestyle rap,. a style of rap in which the topic, rhymes, and rhythm are improvised.
Her first breakout rap album was all freestyle.
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a rap that is improvised throughout.
He's known for his freestyles.
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verb (used with or without object)
noun
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a competition or race, as in swimming, in which each participant may use a style of his or her choice instead of a specified style
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an amateur style of wrestling with an agreed set of rules
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Also called: all-in wrestling. a style of professional wrestling with no internationally agreed set of rules
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a series of acrobatics performed in skiing, etc
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( as modifier )
a freestyle event
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of freestyle
Explanation
In sports, a freestyle race allows the athlete to choose between different methods of competing. Swimmers can use any stroke in a freestyle event (though they almost always choose the front crawl). In swimming, freestyle is synonymous with the crawl — but that's only because most swimmers choose to swim this fast stroke in freestyle races. Officially, freestyle offers a choice between crawl, breaststroke, butterfly, or backstroke. Sports that allow for creativity are often described as freestyle, too, like freestyle BMX events and freestyle skiing, both of which involve jumps and tricks. Freestyle was coined from the idea that athletes are free to choose the style they prefer.
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:
Released in June, the group’s fourth album, “Escrito en Agua,” is a bohemian tour de force — a bewitching combination of freestyle poetry, menacing Krautrock, melancholy shades of jazz and post-rock.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
For instance, the Valley Zone Pavilion is “a backyard-inspired oasis” near venues for 3x3 basketball, modern pentathlon, skateboarding, cycling BMX racing and cycling BMX freestyle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
The bouncy freestyle rhythm in “Soho” melts into feverish pop harmonies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Colbert was third, with 1:55.81, in the women's 200m freestyle final as she finished behind winner Barbora Seemanova, who set a championship record of 1:54.38, with Marrit Steenbergen of the Netherlands second in 1:54.65.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
He kept trying to freestyle about how dope the party was going to be, but kept interrupting himself by shoveling food into his mouth.
From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds
"But when she freestyles, doing new exercises… she puts all her heart into it," she says.
From BBC ● Dec. 8, 2023
Kim freestyles as he goes and sees what comes up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2023
McDevitt settled for a pair of All-America Consideration time wins, in the 200 and 500 freestyles.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 12, 2022
In “Heated,” a dancehall-inspired track, the singer uses the words “spaz” and “spazzin’” in an energetically recited portion of the song that’s a callback to the freestyles at some ballroom events.
From New York Times ● Aug. 1, 2022
“I wrote the song, and I came up with the freestyles on the spot just like you’re supposed to do in a battle. What are you trying to say?”
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
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.
