A person who forms opinions based on reason and logic rather than accepting traditional beliefs, especially regarding religion or politics.
From 'freethink' + agent suffix '-er'. Emerged as a defined term in 17th-century England and became prominent during the Enlightenment to describe people who challenged religious authority through rational argument.
Calling someone a 'freethinker' was an insult in many 18th-century societies—it often meant atheist or dangerous radical—but freethinkers like Spinoza and Hume fundamentally reshaped Western thought by insisting nothing was beyond questioning.
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