Liberal and Whig

Liberal

Liberal noun - A person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties.

Whig and liberal are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Whig" instead a noun "Liberal".

Whig

Whig noun - A member of the political party that urged social reform in 18th and 19th century England; was the opposition party to the Tories.
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Synonyms for Whig

Liberal and Whig are semantically related. You can use "Liberal" instead a noun "Whig".

Both words in one sentence

  • This conclusion presumes the so-called Whig theory of history, which proposes that societies become infinitely more politically liberal as time passes.
  • Insult Backfire The less well known today, but still embraced "Whig" for a Liberal meant "Puritan Scots Pleb".
  • The terms Whig (Liberal) and Tory (Conservative), used by various British and British-derived (American, Canadian etc) political parties through the ages, both started out as fairly insulting terms in Irish Gaelic (whiggamore 'horse thief' and toraidh 'outlaw').
Cite this Source
Whig and Liberal. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 15, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/liberal/whig
Liberal & Whig. N.p., 2016. Web. 15 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/liberal/whig>.
Whig or Liberal. 2016. Accessed August 15, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/liberal/whig.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "liberal" and "Whig" have occurred on timeline