communal

[ kuh-myoon-l, kom-yuh-nl ]
See synonyms for communal on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. used or shared in common by everyone in a group: a communal jug of wine.

  2. of, by, or belonging to the people of a community; shared or participated in by the public: communal land; Building the playground was a communal project.

  1. pertaining to a commune or a community: communal life.

  2. engaged in by or involving two or more communities: communal conflict.

Origin of communal

1
First recorded in 1805–15; from French, from Latin commūnālis, equivalent to commūn(e) “community, state” + -ālis adjective suffix; see commune2, -al1

Other words for communal

Other words from communal

  • com·mu·nal·ly, adverb
  • in·ter·com·mu·nal, adjective
  • non·com·mu·nal, adjective
  • non·com·mu·nal·ly, adverb
  • un·com·mu·nal, adjective

Words Nearby communal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use communal in a sentence

  • One important characteristic of the communal animals is that they become mentally specialized.

    Man And His Ancestor | Charles Morris
  • The hive bee, the most communal in habit, shows the highest traits of intelligent activity.

    Man And His Ancestor | Charles Morris
  • The social animals differ from the communal in that the individuality of the members is fully preserved.

    Man And His Ancestor | Charles Morris
  • The result of such a process of evolution in the case of the communal animals is a strict specialism.

    Man And His Ancestor | Charles Morris
  • While only in minor traits communal, they are eminently social, and have doubtless derived great advantage from this.

    Man And His Ancestor | Charles Morris

British Dictionary definitions for communal

communal

/ (ˈkɒmjʊnəl) /


adjective
  1. belonging or relating to a community as a whole

  2. relating to different groups within a society: communal strife

  1. of or relating to a commune or a religious community

Derived forms of communal

  • communality (ˌkɒmjʊˈnælɪtɪ), noun
  • communally, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012