1. Historical the subjects in the trivium and quadrivium
2. the subjects of an academic college course, including literature, philosophy, languages, history, and, usually, survey courses of the sciences, as distinguished from professional or technical subjects: sometimes referred to as arts, as in Bachelor of Arts

Etymology: transl. of L artes liberales, lit., arts befitting a freeman: so named in contrast to artes serviles, lower (lit., servile) arts, and because open to study only by freemen (L liberi); in later use understood as “arts becoming a gentleman”