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A “freeloader” is a person who gets the benefit of something, even as someone else pays to provide that benefit. In today’s lesson, we talked about password sharing. If one person pays for a Netflix account, and his friend “borrows” his password and continues to log in forever, the friend is the freeloader.
This can happen in a business context, too. Imagine there are two big businesses and five small businesses on a street. The big businesses pay to install new landscaping and lighting on the street. The five small businesses can’t afford to contribute. However, they are on the street too, so they benefit from the landscaping. You can say the five small businesses are “freeloaders” in this case. They get the benefit, but others are paying the cost.
This can, sometimes, have a negative connotation, like someone is taking advantage of the generosity of someone else.