unfettered

CEFRC1

/ʌnˈfɛtəd/

adjective · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

01
adjective
Free from limits, control, or restrictions.
02
adjective
Extra detail
Not bound by chains or shackles.

Examples

In common usage, "economic freedom" often refers to unfettered economic exploitation.
This unfettered power goes against democracy.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses: 4
Parts of speech: 2
Citations: 5
Synonyms: 5

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meaning

Not restricted.

verb

Extra meaning

simple past and past participle of unfetter

More examples

In context

Near-synonyms: unmanacled, unhandcuffed
I envy not the beast that takes ⁠His license in the field of time, ⁠Unfetter’d by the sense of crime, To whom a conscience never wakes; […]
The EU was established to oppose the unfettered power of nation states and defuse the rivalries between them.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The writer was given blank freedom to express her ideas in the new magazine.

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Nearby

Citations

The word in print, with each source given in full.

I envy not the beast that takes ⁠His license in the field of time, ⁠Unfetter’d by the sense of crime, To whom a conscience never wakes; […]
1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XXVII”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 44
In a corner of the market among the pens for cattle, Barnaby knelt down, and pausing every now and then to pass his hand over his father’s face, or look up to him with a smile, knocked off his irons. When he had seen him spring, a free man, to his feet, and had given vent to the transport of delight which the sight awakened, he went to work upon his own, which soon fell rattling down upon the ground, and left his limbs unfettered.
1841, Charles Dickens, chapter 68, in Barnaby Rudge
We declare the right of the people of Ireland to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible.
1916, Thomas Clarke, Proclamation of the Irish Republic
This Act contained no provisions relating to the gauge of the line, and at this early date there was no legislation governing the gauge of railways generally, so that the Eastern Counties directors had an unfettered choice in the matter.
1956 February, B. D. J. Walsh, “"Broad Gauge" in East Anglia”, in Railway Magazine, page 95
Alexander says she has been accused of censorship "worse than a Syrian dictator" over her quest to have gang-related videos taken down. But her campaign shows the debate over a completely unfettered internet is not clear-cut.
2012 April 19, Josh Halliday, “Free speech haven or lawless cesspool – can the internet be civilised?”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 08 May 2025

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Origin

adjective

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Deep Dive

adjective

verb

More examples

Related

Quick test

The writer was given blank— freedom to express her ideas in the new magazine.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

The writer was given blank freedom to express her ideas in the new magazine.