condominium

American  

[kon-duh-min-ee-uhm] / ˌkɒn dəˈmɪn i əm /

noun

• condominiums
  plural

1. an apartment house, office building, or other multiple-unit complex, the units of which are individually owned, each owner receiving a recordable deed to the individual unit purchased, including the right to sell, mortgage, etc., that unit and sharing in joint ownership of any common grounds, passageways, etc.

2. a unit in such a building.

3. International Law.

   1. joint sovereignty over a territory by several states.

   2. the territory itself.

4. joint or concurrent dominion.

---

condominium British  

/ ˌkɒndəˈmɪnɪəm /

noun

1. joint rule or sovereignty

2. a country ruled by two or more foreign powers

3. Sometimes shortened to: condo.  Compare cooperative

   1. an apartment building in which each apartment is individually wholly owned and the common areas are jointly owned

   2. the title under which an apartment in such a building is owned

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mini-condominium
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• condominiums
  plural

Etymology

Origin of condominium

1705–15; < New Latin. See con-, dominium

Explanation

A condominium is a building made up of privately owned apartments. Your grandparents might decide to move into a condominium in Florida. A condominium is split into units, which can be apartments, floors of houses, or even entire houses — each of these units is also a condominium. Rather than renting from a landlord, the way you do with an apartment, each occupant owns his or her individual condominium, and they all contribute money each month for maintenance and upkeep. The Modern Latin meaning of condominium is "joint rule or sovereignty," combining com-, "together," and dominum, "right of ownership."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

condominium condominiums

Their down payment of $120,000 came from the proceeds of the sale of their Danvers condominium unit.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

Recently in West Hollywood, a pack of coyotes began occupying an abandoned condominium construction site.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2026

The couple, who manage a condominium complex in the Florida Keys, have stopped going to see their doctors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

The housing project, which was billed as a four-story, 22-unit residential condominium development, has been in the works since at least 2017, but appears to have stalled several years ago.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

He lives in a high-rise condominium on the beach in Florida.

From "The View From Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg

Kevin, a tenant who also works in property sales for Forest City, believes scammers are still operating in "condominiums or serviced apartments" in the complex.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

The tax would target homes, co-ops and condominiums that are valued above $5 million when the owner’s primary residence is elsewhere.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 27, 2026

For condominiums, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac blacklist buildings with significant deferred maintenance or thin reserves.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026

An uptick in demand coupled with the city’s notorious lack of housing supply means that fierce bidding wars are breaking out again for single-family homes and condominiums in desirable neighborhoods.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 15, 2026

I was working then as an itinerant carpenter, framing condominiums in Boulder for $3.50 an hour.

From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

Related Words

• apartment
• co-op
• condo
• townhouse