In this context, we could spend ages looking at the historic context to try and define what is and what is not neoliberalism. And even then, people would have their own subjective opinions because it's not describing an object's quality such as a rock. Neoliberalism is related to people's economic agendas. And where there is money involved, there tends to be heightened emotions.
As a comparison, the word "theory" has a different meaning in science compared to lay people's everyday use of the word. Furthermore, many lay people prefer their definition of "theory" because that aligns with their personal belief that evolution is, to paraphrase "only a theory".