Free from or free of?

[DocMcStuffinsBigBookOfOuches]

I saw a banner recently and the wording has been stuck in my head ever since - I can't decide if it's right or not and it's driving me crazy! As a disclaimer, I was born in the glory days of the seventies when grammar was supposed of be absorbed from the ether and not taught!

The sign said "Free Scotland from nuclear weapons" - my brain says this wording is wrong and should be "Free Scotland of nuclear weapons".

Can anyone put me out of my misery please?!?

[DadDadDad]

When it comes to "free" as an adjective, it seems "free from" and "free of" are both acceptable, although that's varied over time, and to some people's ears one or other might do better in certain usages. See here for example: english.stackexchange.com/questions/112467/free-of-vs-free-from

That said, your example uses "free" as a verb, and to my ear, "free from" sounds better. (I might say "rid ... of"). But it seems that too is a matter of preference - eg see the verb entry here: dictionary.reference.com/browse/free

So, I don't think you can say the wording is wrong, but neither is your alternative.

[momb]

I agree with you OP. I've seen both used in different contexts but in this case the word free is used as a synonym for rid:
Rid Scotland of Nuclear Weapons.

If free were being used to mean 'set free' or 'release' then from would be appropriate:
Hence Free Scotland from Tyranny.

[WowOoo]

I agree with DadDad and think they are interchangeable.

[DadDadDad]

No, no, no, we can't all agree on Pedants' Corner!

[prism]

I think if you're going to be free of something there's the question of whether you attached yourself to it, or the other way round, and I suspect that if there's any difference between "from" and "of" in this context, it's to do with that. So Tyranny, which is always there (at least notionally) is always ready to grip Scotland, and hence Scotland needs to free itself from it (ongoing conceptual distancing); whereas the nuclear weapons were put there deliberately, so if Scotland frees itself of them, they will be gone.

IMHO.

[DocMcStuffinsBigBookOfOuches]

Thank you for your replies - I really appreciate you all taking the time to try and help me 'get' this. Usually I find my grammar etc is pretty passable, probably because I devour books and have always done so, and thankfully picked up some good habits that way, but I still have a niggle of burning resentment for the education system that decided not to bother teaching me such useful things!