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common

 - 8 dictionary results

com⋅mon

  [kom-uhn] adjective, -er, -est, noun
–adjective
1. belonging equally to, or shared alike by, two or more or all in question: common property; common interests.
2. pertaining or belonging equally to an entire community, nation, or culture; public: a common language or history; a common water-supply system.
3. joint; united: a common defense.
4. widespread; general; ordinary: common knowledge.
5. of frequent occurrence; usual; familiar: a common event; a common mistake.
6. hackneyed; trite.
7. of mediocre or inferior quality; mean; low: a rough-textured suit of the most common fabric.
8. coarse; vulgar: common manners.
9. lacking rank, station, distinction, etc.; unexceptional; ordinary: a common soldier; common people; the common man; a common thief.
10. Dialect. friendly; sociable; unaffected.
11. Anatomy. forming or formed by two or more parts or branches: the common carotid arteries.
12. Prosody. (of a syllable) able to be considered as either long or short.
13. Grammar.
a. not belonging to an inflectional paradigm; fulfilling different functions that in some languages require different inflected forms: English nouns are in the common case whether used as subject or object.
b. constituting one of two genders of a language, esp. a gender comprising nouns that were formerly masculine or feminine: Swedish nouns are either common or neuter.
c. noting a word that may refer to either a male or a female: French élève has common gender. English lacks a common gender pronoun in the third person singular.
d. (of a noun) belonging to the common gender.
14. Mathematics. bearing a similar relation to two or more entities.
15. of, pertaining to, or being common stock: common shares.
–noun
16. Often, commons. Chiefly New England. a tract of land owned or used jointly by the residents of a community, usually a central square or park in a city or town.
17. Law. the right or liberty, in common with other persons, to take profit from the land or waters of another, as by pasturing animals on another's land (common of pasturage) or fishing in another's waters (common of piscary).
18. commons, (used with a singular or plural verb)
a. the commonalty; the nonruling class.
b. the body of people not of noble birth or not ennobled, as represented in England by the House of Commons.
c. (initial capital letter) the representatives of this body.
d. (initial capital letter) the House of Commons.
19. commons,
a. (used with a singular verb) a large dining room, esp. at a university or college.
b. (usually used with a plural verb) British. food provided in such a dining room.
c. (usually used with a plural verb) food or provisions for any group.
20. (sometimes initial capital letter) Ecclesiastical.
a. an office or form of service used on a festival of a particular kind.
b. the ordinary of the Mass, esp. those parts sung by the choir.
c. the part of the missal and breviary containing Masses and offices of those saints assigned to them.
21. Obsolete.
a. the community or public.
b. the common people.
—Idiom
22. in common, in joint possession or use; shared equally: They have a love of adventure in common.
Use common in a Sentence
Origin:
1250–1300; ME comun < AF, OF < L commūnis common, presumably orig. “sharing common duties,” akin to mūnia duties of an office, mūnus task, duty, gift < a base *moin-, c. mean 2 ; cf. com-, immune

Related forms:
com⋅mon⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
4. universal, prevalent, popular. See general. 5. customary, everyday. 7, 8, 9. Common, vulgar, ordinary refer, often with derogatory connotations of cheapness or inferiority, to what is usual or most often experienced. Common applies to what is accustomed, usually experienced, or inferior, to the opposite of what is exclusive or aristocratic: The park is used by the common people. Vulgar properly means belonging to the people, or characteristic of common people; it connotes low taste, coarseness, or ill breeding: the vulgar view of things; vulgar in manners and speech. Ordinary refers to what is to be expected in the usual order of things; it means average or below average: That is a high price for something of such ordinary quality.

Antonyms:
1. individual. 5. unusual.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To common
com·mon   (kŏm'ən)   
adj.   com·mon·er, com·mon·est

    1. Belonging equally to or shared equally by two or more; joint: common interests.

    2. Of or relating to the community as a whole; public: for the common good. See Usage Note at mutual.

    3. Occurring frequently or habitually; usual.

    4. Most widely known; ordinary: the common housefly.

    5. Not distinguished by superior or noteworthy characteristics; average: the common spectator.

    6. Of no special quality; standard: common procedure.

    7. Of mediocre or inferior quality; second-rate: common cloth.

    8. Either masculine or feminine in gender.

    9. Representing one or all of the members of a class; not designating a unique entity.

  2. Widespread; prevalent.

    1. Occurring frequently or habitually; usual.

    2. Most widely known; ordinary: the common housefly.

    3. Not distinguished by superior or noteworthy characteristics; average: the common spectator.

    4. Of no special quality; standard: common procedure.

    5. Of mediocre or inferior quality; second-rate: common cloth.

    6. Either masculine or feminine in gender.

    7. Representing one or all of the members of a class; not designating a unique entity.

  4. Having no special designation, status, or rank: a common sailor.

    1. Not distinguished by superior or noteworthy characteristics; average: the common spectator.

    2. Of no special quality; standard: common procedure.

    3. Of mediocre or inferior quality; second-rate: common cloth.

    4. Either masculine or feminine in gender.

    5. Representing one or all of the members of a class; not designating a unique entity.

  6. Unrefined or coarse in manner; vulgar: behavior that branded him as common.

  7. Grammar

    1. Either masculine or feminine in gender.

    2. Representing one or all of the members of a class; not designating a unique entity.

n.  

  1. commons The common people; commonalty.

  2. commons (used with a sing. or pl. verb)

    1. The social class composed of commoners.

    2. The parliamentary representatives of this class.

  3. The House of Commons. Often used in the plural.

  4. A tract of land, usually in a centrally located spot, belonging to or used by a community as a whole: a band concert on the village common.

  5. The legal right of a person to use the lands or waters of another, as for fishing.

  6. commons (used with a sing. verb) A building or hall for dining, typically at a university or college.

  7. Common stock.

  8. Ecclesiastical A service used for a particular class of festivals.


[Middle English commune, from Old French commun, from Latin commūnis; see mei-1 in Indo-European roots.]
com'mon·ly adv., com'mon·ness n.
Synonyms: These adjectives describe what is generally known or frequently encountered. Common applies to what takes place often, is widely used, or is well known: The botanist studied the common dandelion.
The term also implies coarseness or a lack of distinction: My wallet was stolen by a common thief.
Ordinary describes something usual that is indistinguishable from others, sometimes derogatorily: A ballpoint pen is adequate for ordinary purposes. The critic gave the ordinary performance a mediocre review.
Familiar applies to what is well known or quickly recognized: Most children can recite familiar nursery rhymes.
Vulgar describes association with the great mass of people and often connotes lack of refinement: "He [Shakespeare] was not something sacred and aloof from the vulgar herd of men" (William Hazlitt). See Also Synonyms at general.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

common 
1297, from O.Fr. comun, from L. communis "in common, public, general, shared by all or many," from PIE *ko-moin-i- "held in common," compound adjective formed from *ko- "together" + *moi-n-, suffixed form of base *mei- "change, exchange" (see mutable), hence lit. "shared by all." Second element of the compound also is the source of L. munia "duties, public duties, functions," those related to munia "office." Perhaps reinforced in O.Fr. by Frank. descendant of P.Gmc. *gamainiz (cf. O.E. gemæne "common, public, general, universal"), from the P.Gmc. form of PIE *ko-moin-i- (see mean (adj.)). Used disparagingly of women and criminals since c.1300. Commons "the third estate of the English people as represented in Parliament" is from 1377. Common sense is 14c., originally the power of uniting mentally the impressions conveyed by the five physical senses, thus "ordinary understanding, without which one is foolish or insane" (L. sensus communis, Gk. koine aisthesis); meaning "good sense" is from 1726. Common pleas is 13c., from Anglo-Fr. communs plets, hearing civil actions by one subject against another as opposed to pleas of the crown. Common prayer is contrasted with private prayer.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: com·mon
Function: adjective
1 a : of or relating to a community at large : PUBLIC <common defense> b : known to the community common thief>
2 : belonging to or shared by two or more persons or things or by all members of a group common disaster> <common areas of the building>
3 : of or relating to common stock <common shares>

Main Entry: common
Function: noun
1 plural cap : HOUSE OF COMMONS
2 : the legal right of taking a profit in another's land in common with the owner or others common of estovers> common of pasture>
3 : a piece of land subject to common use: as a : land jointly owned and used esp. for pasture b : a public open area in a municipality
4 : a condition of shared ownership : a condition in which a right is shared with an interest held by another person common> —see also tenancy in common at TENANCY —compare SEVERALTY 1
5 : COMMON STOCK at, STOCK
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: com·mon
Pronunciation: 'käm-&n
Function: adjective
: formed of or dividing into two or more branches common facialvein> <common iliac vessels>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Idioms & Phrases

common

In addition to the idioms beginning with common, also see in common.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Encyclopedia

common

in Anglo-American property law, an area of land for use by the public. The term originated in feudal England, where the "waste," or uncultivated land, of a lord's manor could be used for pasture and firewood by his tenants. For centuries this right of commons conflicted with the lord's right to "approve" (i.e., appropriate for his own use) any of his waste, provided he left enough land to support the commoners' livestock. In the 19th century the right of approvement was in effect assumed by the government. Under modern agriculture, common pasturing became obsolete, and commons became public land used mostly for recreation.

Learn more about common with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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