Definitions for commonˈkɒm ən

Random House Webster's College Dictionary

com•mon^*ˈkɒm ən(adj.; n.)-er, -est

(adj.)belonging equally to, or shared alike by, two or more or all in question:
common objectives.
pertaining or belonging equally to an entire community, nation, or culture:
a common language.
joint; united:
a common defense.
widespread; general; universal:
common knowledge.
of frequent occurrence; usual; familiar:
a common mistake.
of mediocre or inferior quality; mean:
a rough, common fabric.
coarse; vulgar:
common manners.
lacking rank, station, distinction, etc.; ordinary:
a common soldier.
in keeping with accepted standards; fundamental:
common decency.
(of a syllable) able to be considered as either long or short.
Category: Prosody
(of a grammatical case) fulfilling different functions that in some languages would require different inflected forms: of or pertaining to a word or gender that may refer to either a male or female: Frenchélève constituting a gender comprising nouns that were formerly masculine or feminine:
English nouns used as subject or object are in the common case.
“pupil” has common gender.
Dutch nouns are either common or neuter in gender.
Category: Grammar
bearing a similar mathematical relation to two or more entities.
Category: Math
of or pertaining to common stock.
Category: Business
(n.)Often, commons. a tract of land owned or used jointly by the residents of a community, as a central square or park in a city or town.
Category: Common Vocabulary, Dialect
the right, in common with other persons, to pasture animals on another's land or to fish in another's waters.
Category: Law
commons, the common people; commonalty. the body of people not of noble birth, as represented by the House of Commons. (cap.) (used with a sing. v.) the House of Commons.
Category: Government
commons, (used with a sing. v.) a large dining room, esp. at a university or college. (usu. with a pl. v.) food or provisions for any group.
(sometimes cap.) an ecclesiastical office or form of service used on a festival of a particular kind. the ordinary of the Mass, esp. those parts sung by the choir.
Category: Religion

Idioms for common:

in common,in joint possession or use; shared equally.
Category: Idiom

^* Syn: common , ordinary , vulgar refer, often with derogatory connotations, to what is usual or most often experienced. common applies to what is widespread or unexceptional; it often suggests inferiority or coarseness: common servants; common cloth. ordinary refers to what is to be expected in the usual order of things; it suggests being average or below average: a high price for something of such ordinary quality. vulgar means belonging to the people or characteristic of common people; it suggests low taste, coarseness, or ill breeding: vulgar manners; vulgar speech. See also general.

Origin of common:

1250–1300; ME comun < AF, OF < L commūnis common <com-+mūnus task, duty, gift, c. mean2

com′mon•ness(n.)

Princeton's WordNet

park, commons, common, green(adj)
a piece of open land for recreational use in an urban area
"they went for a walk in the park"
common(adj)
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
"for the common good"; "common lands are set aside for use by all members of a community"
common(adj)
having no special distinction or quality; widely known or commonly encountered; average or ordinary or usual
"the common man"; "a common sailor"; "the common cold"; "a common nuisance"; "followed common procedure"; "it is common knowledge that she lives alone"; "the common housefly"; "a common brand of soap"
common, mutual(adj)
common to or shared by two or more parties
"a common friend"; "the mutual interests of management and labor"
common, usual(adj)
commonly encountered
"a common (or familiar) complaint"; "the usual greeting"
common, vernacular, vulgar(adj)
being or characteristic of or appropriate to everyday language
"common parlance"; "a vernacular term"; "vernacular speakers"; "the vulgar tongue of the masses"; "the technical and vulgar names for an animal species"
common, plebeian, vulgar, unwashed(adj)
of or associated with the great masses of people
"the common people in those days suffered greatly"; "behavior that branded him as common"; "his square plebeian nose"; "a vulgar and objectionable person"; "the unwashed masses"
coarse, common(adj)
of low or inferior quality or value
"of what coarse metal ye are molded"- Shakespeare; "produced...the common cloths used by the poorer population"
coarse, common, rough-cut, uncouth, vulgar(adj)
lacking refinement or cultivation or taste
"he had coarse manners but a first-rate mind"; "behavior that branded him as common"; "an untutored and uncouth human being"; "an uncouth soldier--a real tough guy"; "appealing to the vulgar taste for violence"; "the vulgar display of the newly rich"
common(adj)
to be expected; standard
"common decency"

Kernerman English Learner's Dictionary

common(adjective)ˈkɒm ən
seen, done, or used frequently
a common problem; It's common for students to lose sleep during exams.; a disease common among older men
commonˈkɒm ən
shared by people or things
a common goal; characteristics common to both species of plant
commonˈkɒm ən
ideas or goals shared by people or groups who disagree
to try to find common ground
commonˈkɒm ən
sth that everyone knows
It's common knowledge that they hate each other.
commonˈkɒm ən
not special at all; = ordinary
a common criminal; common courtesy/decency; plants commonly found in the Northeast; the water beetle, commonly known as a "backswimmer"; a belief commonly held in the area
common(noun)ˈkɒm ən
an area of open public land in a town or city
walking on Boston Common
commonˈkɒm ən
to share the same belief or characteristic
I don't have a lot in common with my brother.; a trait that the two cultures have in common

Wiktionary

common(Noun)
Mutual good, shared by more than one.
common(Noun)
A tract of land in common ownership; common land.
common(Verb)
To communicate (something).
common(Verb)
To converse, talk.
common(Verb)
To have sex.
common(Adjective)
Mutual; shared by more than one.
common(Adjective)
Occurring or happening regularly or frequently; usual.
It is common to find sharks off this coast.
common(Adjective)
Found in large numbers or in a large quantity.
Sharks are common in these waters.
common(Adjective)
Simple, ordinary or vulgar.
common(Adjective)
In some languages, particularly Germanic languages, of the gender originating from the coalescence of the masculine and feminine categories of nouns.
common(Adjective)
Of or pertaining to uncapitalized nouns in English, i.e., common nouns vs. proper nouns
common(Adjective)
vernacular, referring to the name of a kind of plant or animal, i.e., common name vs. scientific name

Origin: From comun, from comun, from comun (rare in Gallo-Romance. Reinforced as a Carolingian calque of gemeini, gamaini "common" in ) from communis, from ko-moin-i. Displaced native imene (from gemæne), mene (also from gemæne), samen (from samen).

Webster Dictionary

Common(u)
belonging or relating equally, or similarly, to more than one; as, you and I have a common interest in the property
Common(u)
belonging to or shared by, affecting or serving, all the members of a class, considered together; general; public; as, properties common to all plants; the common schools; the Book of Common Prayer
Common(u)
often met with; usual; frequent; customary
Common(u)
not distinguished or exceptional; inconspicuous; ordinary; plebeian; -- often in a depreciatory sense
Common(u)
profane; polluted
Common(u)
given to habits of lewdness; prostitute
Common(noun)
the people; the community
Common(noun)
an inclosed or uninclosed tract of ground for pleasure, for pasturage, etc., the use of which belongs to the public; or to a number of persons
Common(noun)
the right of taking a profit in the land of another, in common either with the owner or with other persons; -- so called from the community of interest which arises between the claimant of the right and the owner of the soil, or between the claimants and other commoners entitled to the same right
Common(verb)
to converse together; to discourse; to confer
Common(verb)
to participate
Common(verb)
to have a joint right with others in common ground
Common(verb)
to board together; to eat at a table in common