Meaning & use
free trader
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A person or country that supports trade between countries with few or no taxes or limits.
Grammar: Countable: use a/an or the plural. 'She is a free trader' means she holds this belief.
Patterns
- be a free trader
- free traders argue that ...
As a free trader, she opposes taxes on imported steel.
The country has long been a free trader, keeping import duties very low.
Free traders say that open markets lower prices for everyone.
nouncountable
A person or company that buys and sells goods internationally without government restrictions.
Grammar: Used for people who actually do the trading, not only for those who support the policy.
Patterns
- a free trader in something
- free traders buy and sell something
He works as a free trader, shipping coffee between Brazil and Europe.
Small free traders often struggle with complex customs rules.
Word forms
| plural | free traders |
|---|
Common combinations
- a committed free trader
- The minister is a committed free trader who wants lower tariffs.
- free trade agreement
- The two sides signed a free trade agreement last year.
- free trade policy
- Their free trade policy has boosted exports.
- oppose free trade
- Some industries oppose free trade because of foreign competition.
Synonyms and how they differ
- liberalizer
- A very general word for someone who removes controls; it is not limited to trade, so 'free trader' is clearer in economic contexts.
- protectionist
- This is the opposite position, so use it only when you mean someone who wants limits on imports.
Opposites
Word family
- free trade noun
- The system of buying and selling between countries without heavy taxes or limits.
- free-trade adjective
- Describing agreements or areas where such trade happens, as in 'free-trade zone'.
Commonly confused: free trader or free agent?
free trader vs free agent
A free agent is a sports player free to join any team, or more generally someone with no commitments; it has nothing to do with trade policy.
Practice
The senator is a strong free trader, so she probably wants to ___ import taxes.
Choose one answer.
A free trader supports open trade, so 'cut' (reduce) fits the meaning. 'Raise' describes a protectionist, the opposite position.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “free trader”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.