h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://www.h2g2.com/A496262
I thought this entry worth of inclusion to the guide as there are ~so many~ meanings and this may help a non-English speaking person...

Neat. I hadn't given this word much thought before, but it is, indeed, used for a lot. Upon reading your list, I began to wonder whether there is some way to organize it by some principle that could tie groups of definitions together. Like, oh, i dunno... sometimes "free" merely means "without," (carefree = without care, tax free = without taxes) but sometimes, it means without /something/ which remains unnamed (free passage = passage without obstruction, "is anyone free" = "is anyone without something better to do right now", free lunch = lunch without cost). Is there any way for a non-native speaker to distinguish these?

Hmm, this is some interesting stuff! I'm wondering about my favorite, "free will," which means will without... uh, compulsion of some kind? But that probably needs its own entry.

Oh, the quotes section looks a little funny the way there are 's between each quote and its interpretation, but not between the interpretation and the next quote. Know what I mean?

Thank you for your comments, GTBacchus. I have altered the last part.

Here are some edited guide entries you might be interested in linking to:

http://www.h2g2.com/A301122 - The Problem of Free Will
http://www.h2g2.com/A272044 - There Ain't No Such Thing as a Free Lunch
http://www.h2g2.com/A371602 - Mobile Phones: Hands Free Attachment
http://www.h2g2.com/A185131 - The Free Newspaper, Metro
http://www.h2g2.com/A301889 - Manicheism, Catharism and the Heresy of the Free Spirit
http://www.h2g2.com/A273836 - Free Internet CDs

You might want to look at these other entries which define words...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A538058 (well)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A538058 (dude)

I think what you're missing is a bit more talking *around* the subject. It's a bit listy...

oh, and GTB's links are relevant

I agree with Lucinda. It's a good article and the stuff in it already is excellent but in my humble opinion it needs a little bit more content of talking about the definitions.
Not trying to be too critical of course!
All the above links are worth looking at.

I don't know what, but it seems like it lacks some stuff.

Do you want the article moved to the Writing workshop, so others may help you add lots of stuff. Their help is for free, of their own free will, and it will help you free this entry from PR and into the guide.


Dancer

You mentioned Care Free. In Germany, that is the brand name of sanitary towels...

I think that the manufacturers of sanitary towels may use the word 'free' and 'freedom' more than almost anybody else!

@ the last two posts

In reply to Dancer: Yes, please! Feel free to move this thread to the writing workshop

Thank you all.
If you are free please drop by my personal space for free


~Seven~

thers a thinf said of Linux involveing a comparision of free beer & free speech perhaps you might like to explain this ..?

I love English. It seems to me that "free" has two basic constellations of meaning: first, receivable without payment or other obligation and second, unencumbered or independent. What is interesting how the two concepts get mixed together in our thinking, just because they are represented by the same word. I would probably organize the posting along those lines. I agree with Dancer (and by implication, some of the others) that the idea is good, but the article needs to be more comprehensive.

Another (probably mis)quotation, but close: "America is supposed to be the land of the free. My mother taught me that free means you don't pay."

Abbie Hoffman

I like the idea of this Entry very much, and I'm sure there are lots more uses and misuses of the word that none of us have thought of yet! I think that mention should be made of the term "free market", meaning unrestrained capitalism of the sort that tends to leave lots of people free to be very poor, and "it's a free country" - an essentially meaningless cliche open to any number of interpretations, but still widely used.

And here's another famous "free" quote: "Freedom is slavery", from George Orwell's "1984".

I can see there is still plenty of work to be done on this entry.
Thank you all for your contributions and time.

Editorial Note: This conversation has been moved from 'Peer Review' to 'The Writing Workshop'.

Hi folks,

This thread has been moved to the Writing Workshop at the author's request.

Thank you.
I haven't forgotten this entry, just been busy.
I would welcome some help!