What is free fall and how does it relate to gravity?

Free fall means a body falls down under no influence of external force except gravitational force.
So when a body is under free fall
According to Force ## ‘F’ = (G*m_1*m_2)/d^2 ##.
where ##m_1 =##mass of the earth = ##M##.
##m_2 =##mass of the body = ##m##.
##d =##distance between the bodies =##R+h = R##
since ##h##<<##R## . ##R =##Radius of the Earth. So the Gravitational Force = ##F = (GMm)/R^2 ## . When we calculate the value of ##(GM)/R^2##we get ##9.8ms^-2##which is taken as ##g =##gravitational . Hence the formula is changed as ##F = mg##. And that wayit is related to gravity.The acceleration of the body is provided by gravitywhich in turn lets the body to fall freely.