original_query: What is the definition of freethought according to the Oxford English Dictionary?
query: What is the definition of freethought according to the Oxford English Dictionary?
answer: According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a freethinker is "a person who forms their own ideas and opinions rather than accepting those of other people, especially in religious teaching."  The OED also defines freethinking as "The free exercise of reason in matters of religious belief, unrestrained by deference to authority; the adoption of the principles of a free-thinker."