freewheeling

[free-hwee-ling, -wee-]

adjective

1. operating in the manner of a freewheel.

2. (of a person) moving about freely, independently, or irresponsibly.

3. (of words, remarks, actions, etc.) unrestrained; irresponsible.

   Loose, freewheeling charges were traded during the argument.

freewheeling

/ ˌfriːˈwiːlɪŋ /

adjective

1. relating to, operating as, or having a freewheel; coasting

2. informal,  free of restraints; carefree or uninhibited

Word History and Origins

Origin of freewheeling¹

First recorded in 1900–05; freewheel + -ing ²

Example Sentences

The freewheeling film is still beloved in the city—though Stewart hopes her current students haven’t seen it.

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Yet they still let her be feral and freewheeling in developing her craft.

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Dubbing it “the Californian Ideology,” they argued that the “new faith” blended the “freewheeling spirit of the hippies with the entrepreneurial zeal of the yuppies.”

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Even if the company makes its products more constrained in corporate contexts, its freewheeling reputation seems likely to limit its inroads.

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The freewheeling debate covered public safety, the rise in antisemitism in the city and affordable housing.

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Related Words

• autonomous 
• nonpartisan 
• self-reliant 
• self-sufficient 
• separate 
• sovereign