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commonwealth

 - 6 dictionary results
Commonwealth Financial
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com⋅mon⋅wealth

  [kom-uhn-welth]
Use commonwealth in a Sentence
–noun
1. (initial capital letter) a group of sovereign states and their dependencies associated by their own choice and linked with common objectives and interests: the British Commonwealth.
2. the Commonwealth. Commonwealth of Nations.
3. (initial capital letter) a federation of states: the Commonwealth of Australia.
4. (initial capital letter) a self-governing territory associated with the U.S.: official designation of Puerto Rico.
5. (initial capital letter) English History. the English government from the abolition of the monarchy in 1649 until the establishment of the Protectorate in 1653, sometimes extended to include the restoration of Charles II in 1660.
6. (initial capital letter) the official designation (rather than “State”) of four states of the U.S.: Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
7. any group of persons united by some common interest.
8. the whole body of people of a nation or state; the body politic.
9. a state in which the supreme power is held by the people; a republican or democratic state.
10. Obsolete. the public welfare.
Origin:
1375–1425; late ME commun welthe
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Commonwealth of Nations

 
–noun
a voluntary association of independent nations and dependent territories linked by historical ties (as parts of the former British Empire) and cooperating on matters of mutual concern, esp. regarding economics and trade.
Also called the Commonwealth.
Formerly, British Commonwealth, British Commonwealth of Nations.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To commonwealth
com·mon·wealth   (kŏm'ən-wělth')   
n.  

  1. The people of a nation or state; the body politic.

  2. A nation or state governed by the people; a republic.

  3. Commonwealth

    1. Used to refer to some U.S. states, namely, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

    2. Used to refer to a self-governing, autonomous political unit voluntarily associated with the United States, namely, Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands.

  4. often Commonwealth The Commonwealth of Nations.

  5. The English state and government from the death of Charles I in 1649 to the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, including the Protectorate of 1653 to 1659.

  6. Archaic The public good; commonweal.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Cultural Dictionary

Commonwealth

A government established in Britain and Ireland in 1649, after the execution of King Charles I. It was in the form of a republic, under the leadership of the parliament. Oliver Cromwell soon assumed the supreme power in the Commonwealth and was given the title Lord Protector. After Cromwell's death in 1658, the Commonwealth quickly lost power, and the Restoration of the monarchy followed in 1660.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

commonwealth 
1470, "public welfare, general good" (from common + wealth); meaning "the state" is attested from 1513; applied specifically to the government of England in the period 1649-1660.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: com·mon·wealth
Pronunciation: 'kä-m&n-"welth
Function: noun
1 : a nation, state, or other political unit: as a : one founded on law and united by compact or tacit agreement by the people for the common good b : one in which supreme authority is vested in the people c : REPUBLIC
2 : a state of the U.S. —used officially of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia
3 often cap : an association of self-governing autonomous states more or less loosely associated in a common allegiance (as to the British crown)
4 often cap : a political unit having local autonomy but voluntarily united with the U.S. —used officially of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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