common

adjective com·mon \ ˈkä-mən \

Updated on: 10 Dec 2017

Definition of common

1 a : of or relating to a community at large : public

work for the common good

b : known to the community

common nuisances

2 a : belonging to or shared by two or more individuals or things or by all members of a group

a common friend

buried in a common grave

common interests

b : belonging equally to two or more mathematical entities

triangles with a common base

c : having two or more branches

common carotid artery

3 a : occurring or appearing frequently : familiar

a common sight

b : of the best known or most frequently seen kind —used especially of plants and animals

the common housefly

c : vernacular 2

common names

4 a : widespread, general

common knowledge

b : characterized by a lack of privilege or special status

common people

a common laborer

c : just satisfying accustomed criteria : elementary

common decency

5 a : falling below ordinary standards : second-rate

Oh hard is the bed they have made him, / And common the blanket and cheap …
—A. E. Housman

b : lacking refinement : coarse

said, in his common vulgar way, the city would have to lump it
—J. K. Jerome

6 : denoting nominal relations by a single linguistic form that in a more highly inflected language might be denoted by two or more different forms

common gender

common case

7 : of, relating to, or being common stock

—

commonly

adverb

—

commonness

play \ˈkä-mən-nəs\ noun

See common defined for English-language learners

See common defined for kids

Examples of common in a Sentence

They have a common ancestor.
The people on the island have a sense of common identity.
It is common practice for one town's fire department to help another town when there is a big fire.
Electric windows are a common feature in new cars.
“Smith” is a common name.
I think some of the most common flowers are also some of the prettiest.
cures for the common cold

Recent Examples of common from the Web

Derek Summerfield, a consultant psychiatrist with the British National Health Service, is one of the few people to speak out against the premise that mental illnesses are common in developing countries.

— joanne silberner, Discover Magazine, "A Global State of Mind," 13 Nov. 2017
Even so, Lehner cautions that voids are common in the pyramids.

— maya wei-haas, Smithsonian, "How Researchers Uncovered a Massive Void In The Great Pyramid of Giza," 3 Nov. 2017
For federal defendants like Manafort, however, unsecured bonds are quite common, accounting for 39 percent of releases in federal courts between 2008 and 2010.

— andrew cohen, Esquire, "Paul Manafort Surrendered to the FBI Monday Morning. He Went Home Monday Night.," 31 Oct. 2017
While outsourcing arrangements are common in the fund industry, this kind of fight over ownership is rare, analysts say.

— asjylyn loder, WSJ, "Nasdaq Claims It Is the Victim of an ETF Heist," 28 Oct. 2017
Such deals typically last for between two and five years, however, not the 30 years that is common in America.

— The Economist, "What goes down…Higher interest rates could hit Britain’s vulnerable economy," 28 Oct. 2017
An accompanying article says a key problem is the Swiss academic system, in which Ph.D. students are selected and essentially hired by a single professor rather than being accepted into a department, as is common in the United States.

— gretchen vogel, Science | AAAS, "Swiss university dissolves astronomy institute after misconduct allegations," 25 Oct. 2017
The mushiness that’s common in canned beans is nowhere to be found.

— alex delany, Bon Appetit, "How to Cook Dried Beans (the Tastiest Beans of All, if You Ask Us)," 23 Oct. 2017
Used copies of this ghostly relic from 1984 are as common in thrift stores as old Barbra Streisand records or Sega Genesis video games.

— jason diamond, Longreads, "Judging Books By Their Covers," 21 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'common.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of common

Middle English commun, from Anglo-French, from Latin communis — more at mean

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

common Synonyms

Synonyms

common or garden [chiefly British], commonplace, everyday, familiar, frequent, garden-variety, household, ordinary, quotidian, routine, ubiquitous, usual, a dime a dozen

Antonyms

extraordinary, infrequent, rare, seldom, uncommon, unfamiliar, unusual

Related Words

normal, regular, standard; de rigueur, mandatory, obligatory; general, universal; ceaseless, constant, continual, continuous, incessant, unceasing; endemic, popular, prevailing, prevalent, rampant; perennial, recurrent, repeated

Near Antonyms

aberrant, abnormal, irregular, unnatural; intermittent, occasional, sporadic

Synonym Discussion of common

common, ordinary, plain, familiar, popular, vulgar mean generally met with and not in any way special, strange, or unusual. common implies usual everyday quality or frequency of occurrence

- a common error
- lacked common honesty

and may additionally suggest inferiority or coarseness.

- common manners

ordinary stresses conformance in quality or kind with the regular order of things.

- an ordinary pleasant summer day
- a very ordinary sort of man

plain is likely to suggest homely simplicity.

- plain hard-working people

familiar stresses the fact of being generally known and easily recognized.

- a familiar melody

popular applies to what is accepted by or prevalent among people in general sometimes in contrast to upper classes or special groups.

- a writer of popular romances

vulgar, otherwise similar to popular, is likely to carry derogatory connotations (as of inferiority or coarseness).

- souvenirs designed to appeal to the vulgar taste

common

noun

Definition of common

1 commons plural : the common people

2 commons plural in form but singular in construction : a dining hall

Students usually have their meals at the commons.

3 commons or Commons plural in form but singular or plural in construction

a : the political group or estate comprising the commoners

b : the parliamentary representatives of the commoners

c : house of commons

4 : the legal right of taking a profit in another's land in common with the owner or others

5 : a piece of land subject to common use: such as

a : undivided land used especially for pasture

b : a public open area in a municipality

A food and jazz festival will be held at the town common.

6 a : a religious service suitable for any of various festivals

b : ordinary 2

7 : common stock

— in common

: shared together

has a lot in common with his neighbors

See common defined for English-language learners

Examples of common in a Sentence

The campus has several dining commons.

Recent Examples of common from the Web

The two states have much in common: a relatively low poverty rate, high levels of personal income, a dependence on New York City, and unsustainable pension costs.

— regina egea and, WSJ, "Does New Jersey’s Next Governor Want to Live in Connecticut?," 13 Oct. 2017
The new facility will include a 3,000 square foot robotics laboratory, a wet lab space for molecular information system research, an undergraduate commons, and a 250 seat auditorium.

— natasha bach, Fortune, "Bill Gates' Rich Friends Like Him So Much They Donated Millions to a University in His Name," 13 Oct. 2017
In the commons area, there are spirit window boxes for each class.

— yadi rodriguez, cleveland.com, "Avon Lake's students show their support near and far: Best School Spirit contest (photos, poll, video)," 20 Oct. 2017
Since 1945, even during the Cold War, the United States, through its Navy, has protected the sea lanes of communications and managed the global commons to ensure a generally peaceful world not divided up into spheres of influence.

— jerry hendrix, National Review, "Why the United States Needs a 355-Ship Navy Now," 18 Oct. 2017
Several hundred people filled a commons area at Alaska Pacific University’s Atwood Center at lunchtime on Monday to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day.

— marc lester, Alaska Dispatch News, "Hundreds celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day at APU," 10 Oct. 2017
The school will be located in a building, leased from the Archdiocese of Seattle, that has seven classrooms, a large commons area, and used to house Sacred Heart School and Seattle Waldorf School.

— paige cornwell, The Seattle Times, "Lakeside opening second — cheaper — school in shadow of Space Needle," 23 Sep. 2017
Other residents suggested the civic center include a commons area for outdoor public gatherings and recreation.

— phil diehl, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Carlsbad wants details on needs for new city hall," 22 Sep. 2017
Rachel Riviello, left, and Rhonda McLaughlin, a relocation specialist with Bridge Residential Property Services, meet at the high-end commons area for residents of The Flats at Alta Left Bank.

— gordon dickson, star-telegram, "Finding an affordable apartment in Fort Worth or Arlington is tough. Here’s why," 12 Sep. 2017

Origin and Etymology of common

see ¹common

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

COMMON Defined for English Language Learners

common

adjective

Definition of common for English Language Learners

: belonging to or shared by two or more people or groups
: done by many people
: occurring or appearing frequently : not rare

common

noun

Definition of common for English Language Learners

: a public area or park usually in the center of a town or city
commons : a place where meals are served at a school, college, etc.

COMMON Defined for Kids

common

adjective com·mon \ ˈkä-mən \

Definition of common for Students

1 : affecting, belonging to, needed by, or used by everybody

for the common good

a common room

2 : shared by two or more individuals or by the members of a family or group

a common ancestor

3 : ¹general 1

common knowledge

4 : occurring, appearing, or used frequently

a common sight

a common name

5 : not above the average in rank or status

a common soldier

6 : not privileged or elite

“… the common folks … live and die unnoticed.”
—L. Frank Baum, The Marvelous Land of Oz

7 : expected from polite and decent people

common courtesy

— in common

: shared together

We have a lot in common.

Synonym Discussion of common

common, ordinary, and familiar mean occurring often. common is used for something that is of the everyday sort and frequently occurs.

- Fishing boats are a common sight around here.

ordinary is used when something is of the usual standard.

- I had an ordinary day.

familiar is used of something that is well-known and easily recognized.

- That song is familiar.

common

noun

Definition of common for Students

: land (as a park) owned and used by a community

Medical Dictionary

common

adjective com·mon \ ˈkäm-ən \

medical Definition of common

: formed of or dividing into two or more branches

the common facial vein

common iliac vessels

Law Dictionary

common

adjective com·mon

legal Definition of common

1 a : of or relating to a community at large : public

common defense

b : known to the community

a common thief

2 : belonging to or shared by two or more persons or things or by all members of a group

when the insured and the beneficiary perish in a common disaster

common areas of the building

3 : of or relating to common stock

common shares

common

noun

legal Definition of common

1 plural capitalized : house of commons

2 : the legal right of taking a profit in another's land in common with the owner or others

the common of estovers

the common of pasture

3 : a piece of land subject to common use: as

a : land jointly owned and used especially 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

held the estate in common

— see also tenancy in common at tenancy — compare severalty 1

5 : common stock at stock

Learn More about common

See words that rhyme with common Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for common Spanish Central: Translation of common Nglish: Translation of common for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of common for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about common

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common

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COMMON Defined for English Language Learners

common

Definition of common for English Language Learners

common

Definition of common for English Language Learners

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common

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common

Definition of common for Students

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common

medical Definition of common

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common

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common

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