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Meaning & use

freeing

adjective, verb·Everyday

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UK/ˈfriːɪŋ/
US/ˈfriːɪŋ/

Meanings

  1. adjectivecomparableapproving

    Making you feel released from worry, pressure or limits, so that you can relax or act more openly.

    Grammar: Used before a noun (a freeing experience) or after a linking verb (it felt freeing); it describes the effect on a person.

    Patterns

    • feel freeing
    • find something freeing

    Quitting the job she hated was surprisingly freeing.

    He found it freeing to say what he really thought.

    Letting go of the need to be perfect can be a freeing change.

  2. verbtransitive

    Present participle of free: setting someone or something loose, or removing a burden from them.

    Grammar: Takes an object: freeing the bird; often followed by from: freeing her from debt.

    Patterns

    • freeing someone from something
    • freeing something up

    The rescue team spent hours freeing the hiker from the rockfall.

    Selling the car meant freeing up money for the trip.

    Freeing the dog from its lead, she let it run across the field.

Word forms

comparativemore freeing
superlativemost freeing

Common combinations

feel freeing
Walking away from the argument felt freeing.
a freeing experience
Traveling alone was a freeing experience for her.
strangely freeing
Admitting he was lost was strangely freeing.
freeing up time
The new software is freeing up time for the whole team.
freeing from
Freeing herself from the old habit took months.

Synonyms and how they differ

liberating
Liberating is a little stronger and often hints at escape from something unfair or oppressive, while freeing can be a mild, personal relief.
relieving
Relieving focuses on the ending of pain or worry, but freeing adds the idea of new room to act.
empowering
Empowering suggests gaining strength or control, whereas freeing is about losing a burden.

Opposites

restrictiveconstraining

Word family

free adjective
not controlled or limited
free verb
to let someone or something go
freedom noun
the state of being able to act without limits
freely adverb
without restriction

Commonly confused: freeing or freezing?

freeing vs freezing

Freezing means turning to ice or being extremely cold, while freeing means releasing; the spellings look close but the meanings are unrelated.

Practice

After years of saving for others' expectations, giving the money away was oddly ___.

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