free electron

English

Noun

free electron (plural free electrons)

1. (physics, chemistry) An electron not attached to an atom.
2. (politics, figuratively) A person who acts independently of the organization to which they belong.
   • 2012 October 22, Lolita Buckner-Inniss, “Christiane Taubira”, in Black Past‎^[1]:

     She has been called a “free electron” in politics because of her sometimes independent stances apart from party politics.

   • 2020 June 23, John Bolton, The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir, New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 71:

     Haley was a free electron, which she had obviously gotten used to, communicating directly with Trump.

Translations

electron not attached to an atom

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 自由電子／自由电子 (zh) (zìyóu diànzǐ)

• Finnish: vapaa elektroni
• French: électron libre (fr) m
• Greek: ελεύθερο ηλεκτρόνιο n (eléfthero ilektrónio)
• Polish: elektron swobodny m
• Portuguese: eletrão livre m (Portugal)

References

• “free electron”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “free electron”, in Collins English Dictionary.