free rein

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“One of the things I knew going into the project is that we weren’t going to have free rein access to them at every minute, every second of their time in Los Angeles,” he said.

From Salon • Mar. 27, 2026

Born in 1827, Stanley was the eldest of 10 children given free rein to develop their own thoughts and beliefs.

From BBC • Feb. 15, 2026

“Policy permanency is a more effective driver of long-term economic growth, but we’ll see. She is a political rock star in Japan and will have free rein for now.”

From Barron's • Feb. 9, 2026

Such an agreement would largely give the U.S. free rein over military operations in the territory in exchange for free trade, protection and the provision of basic services.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 7, 2026

Star Trek was set in 2266, but it wasn’t necessary to wait three centuries to see what America’s finest minds could do, given free rein.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly