First recorded in 1945–50
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Lindsey understood that the security of Israel and America are inseparable. He devoted his life to defending America, strengthening our alliance and standing up for the free world," Netanyahu said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 12, 2026
Magyar said that, in October, Hungarians would mark the 70th anniversary of the 1956 revolution, having turned over a new page in their history to become part of the "free world".
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026
A little boy can walk out of a house on Fourth Street in the middle of small-town Kansas, and he can end up leading armies that will save the free world from tyranny.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
"The soldiers who once called each other Redcoats and Yankees became the Tommies and the GIs who together saved the free world," he said.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
Hold it with dignity and grace, like the president of the United States is supposed to hold the fate of the free world.
From "Paper Towns" by John Green
The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has played a rendition of Neil Young's Rockin' in the Free World with a local band at a bar called Diktat on his surprise trip to Kyiv.
From BBC ● May 14, 2024
“That means ensuring the Free World continues to lead when it comes to AI innovation combined with sensible guardrails for AI use.”
From Washington Times ● Nov. 21, 2023
He focuses on reducing polarization through initiatives like the community-building movement Starts With Us and The Lubetzky Family Foundation’s Futures of the Free World program, which supports building democracy around the world.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 28, 2023
“The Free World” is an old-fashioned phrase that once connoted the United States, its allies, and their spheres of influence, and The Free World is in some ways an old-fashioned book.
From Slate ● Apr. 23, 2021
“I’ve got the weight of the Free World on my shoulders and you want me to start World War III?”
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
