take liberties
Idioms-
Behave improperly or disrespectfully; also, make unwanted sexual advances. For example, He doesn't allow staff members to take liberties, such as calling clients by their first names , or She decided that if Jack tried to take liberties with her she would go straight home . This idiom uses liberties in the sense of “an overstepping of propriety,” and thus differs markedly from take the liberty of . [c. 1700]
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Make a statement or take an action not warranted by the facts or circumstances, as in Their book takes liberties with the historical record .
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.
They can take liberties: A Meta executive posted that her OpenClaw bots began deleting her inbox despite instructions to seek confirmation before acting.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026
Did the artist who carved the cross also take liberties, which only informed Nahuas would grasp?
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 28, 2021
A typical fish stew, as served in the South of France, is another example of a dish you can take liberties with.
From New York Times • Dec. 6, 2021
The filmmakers take liberties with the story, which isn’t even really agreed upon by history books, but it’s still an exciting watch for anyone missing classic, adult-targeted espionage thrillers.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 23, 2021
“Oh, how insufferable you’ve become. How do you know what I feel? You take liberties with other peoples minds. You can’t tell how I feel or what I feel or why I feel.”
From "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes
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.
