What does "frank" mean?
Frank: Unbounded by restrictions, limitations, etc.; free. [R.] "It is of frank gift." Spenser.
Additional senses
- 2.Free in uttering one's real sentiments; not reserved; using no disguise; candid; ingenuous; as, a frank nature, conversation, manner, etc.
- 3.Liberal; generous; profuse. [Obs.] Frank of civilities that cost them nothing. L'Estrange.
- 4.Unrestrained; loose; licentious; -- used in a bad sense. Spenser. See Candid, Ingenuous.
- 5.To send by public conveyance free of expense. Dickens.
- 6.To extempt from charge for postage, as a letter, package, or packet, etc.
- 7.The privilege of sending letters or other mail matter, free of postage, or without charge; also, the sign, mark, or signature denoting that a letter or other mail matter is to free of postage. I have said so much, that, if I had not a frank, I must burn my letter and begin again. Cowper.
- 8.(Ethnol.) A member of one of the German tribes that in the fifth century overran and conquered Gaul, and established the kingdom of France.
- 9.A native or inhabitant of Western Europe; a European; -- a term used in the Levant.
- 10.A French coin. See Franc.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00