adjective

• 1Working for oneself as a freelance or the owner of a business rather than for an employer.

  ‘a self-employed builder’

  More example sentences

  • ‘If you are self-employed or your employer does not offer benefits such as those above, there are two main areas likely to be of great relevance.’
  • ‘This contribution will apply to employers, employees and self-employed persons.’
  • ‘When they were in government a lot of small businesses and self-employed people went bust.’
  • ‘Only this time, being self-employed or running the business, they take all the risks.’
  • ‘The price of health insurance for many self-employed workers and small businesses became unaffordable.’
  • ‘How many self-employed people in small business get anything like 4 weeks' annual leave?’
  • ‘The remaining three-quarters operated as freelance or self-employed individuals.’
  • ‘They are self-employed business people who travel the country holding fairs, chiefly during the summer months.’
  • ‘It's the kind of business that many self-employed people aspire to, but few manage to achieve.’
  • ‘Most islanders are self-employed builders, fiddle-makers, boat-makers or jewellers.’
  • ‘Inspired by his love of safari animals, the self-employed builder will make the month-long trip in October this year.’
  • ‘Paul is a self-employed builder and joiner but keeps around 10 to 15 sows at one time in a paddock next to his bungalow.’
  • ‘More than half of all Somalis are self-employed, as herders, farmers, or independent business owners.’
  • ‘Dividends are not liable to NICs so the worker will pay less in NICs than either a conventional employee or a self-employed person.’
  • ‘However, the experience gave the self-employed businessman a day to remember for the rest of his life.’
  • ‘The respondent husband is a self-employed businessman in the City of Niagara Falls.’
  • ‘He was working as a self-employed IT consultant and was doing well.’
  • ‘She began as a self-employed cosmetics consultant, which involved running parties at peoples' homes.’
  • ‘She is now a self-employed consultant advising on the workings of the Scottish parliament.’
  • ‘I work as a consultant for an insurance company, training self-employed agents to run their businesses more efficiently.’

  Synonyms

  freelance, independent, one's own boss, working for oneself, casual

  View synonyms

  1. 1.1Relating to or designed for people working for themselves.
     ‘the rules for self-employed pension plans have been altered’
     More example sentences

     • ‘For those of us with self-employed pension schemes, it is another year before the end-of-October tax relief deadline looms.’
     • ‘This could apply to all wives who are part of the self-employed business.’