[Vocabulary] free vs freely

[murattopak]

I've seen the other topics about this comparison but I think I still can't understand well.

....With information flowing ______ on the internet, consumers, buyers, and sellers become connected.

I said free, after checking the answer key I saw that the correct answer is freely.
Can you please explain the main difference between these two? Thank you.

 

[bhaisahab]

I've seen the other topics about this comparison but I think I still can't understand well.

....With information flowing ______ on the internet, consumers, buyers, and sellers become connected.

I said free, after checking the answer key I saw that the correct answer is freely.
Can you please explain the main difference between these two? Thank you.

Have a look here:
free adjectiveadverb (NOT LIMITED) - definition in the British English Dictionary & Thesaurus - Cambridge Dictionaries Online
And here:
freely adverb (NOT LIMITED) - definition in the British English Dictionary & Thesaurus - Cambridge Dictionaries Online

 

[Tdol]

In colloquial usage, some speakers would use free, but freely is better in a test.