' free ' absolutely means 'free from any sorts constraints or controls Regarding your second question about context The context determines its different denotations, if any, as in 'free press', 'fee speech', 'free stuff' etc.
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6 for free is an informal phrase used to mean without cost or payment. these professionals were giving their time for free
You should not use it where you are supposed to only use a formal sentence, but that doesn't make a phrase not correct.
What is the opposite of free as in free of charge (when we speak about prices) We can add not for negation, but i am looking for a single word. The economic concept is free rider However, when your friends shows up at your house every weekend and drinks all your beer without contributing anything, he's free loading.
My company gives out free promotional items with the company name on it Is this stuff called company swag or schwag It seems that both come up as common usages—google searching indicates that the I want to make a official call and ask the other person whether he is free or not at that particular time
I think asking, “are you free now?” does't sound formal
So, are there any alternatives to. I don't think there's any difference in meaning, although free of charges is much less common than free of charge
