free market
noun
plural free markets
: an economic system in which prices are based on competition among private businesses and are not controlled or regulated by a government : a market (see market entry 1 sense 4d) operating by free competition
… the free market works best when businesses compete to provide the best services …—
Chris Tomlinson
Chris TomlinsonA free market, technically, requires no government intervention, which is why capitalists usually land on the right of the political spectrum. In America, the government regulates businesses for reasons of social welfare and public safety …, so we don't operate in a truly free market.—Carolyn Twersky
—often hyphenated when used before another nounCarolyn Twerskyfree-market competition
free-market principles
One of the basic premises of the free-market system is that actors are free to buy from or sell to a variety of other actors.—Barry C. Lynn
Barry C. LynnExamples of free market in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Given that just about everything else is more expensive in California, this offers additional evidence that the state has suppressed home insurance rates well below free market rates.
—Adam B. Summers, Oc Register, 30 May 2025
Having thrived on the continent for 15 million years, pigeons couldn’t survive a mere three centuries of the free market.
—Dan Flores, Time, 29 May 2025
In fact, without unwise government interference, that type of insurance would have evolved naturally through free market competition.
—John C. Goodman, Forbes.com, 24 May 2025
Free Syria, free market At the Middle East’s oldest commerce chamber, Damascus merchants are bullish about the future.
—Taylor Luck, Christian Science Monitor, 21 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for free market
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Adam B. Summers, Oc Register, 30 May 2025
Having thrived on the continent for 15 million years, pigeons couldn’t survive a mere three centuries of the free market.
—Dan Flores, Time, 29 May 2025
In fact, without unwise government interference, that type of insurance would have evolved naturally through free market competition.
—John C. Goodman, Forbes.com, 24 May 2025
Free Syria, free market At the Middle East’s oldest commerce chamber, Damascus merchants are bullish about the future.
—Taylor Luck, Christian Science Monitor, 21 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for free market
Cite this Entry
“Free market.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/free%20market. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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