commercial

American  

[kuh-mur-shuhl] / kəˈmɜr ʃəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of commerce.

2. engaged in commerce.

3. prepared, done, or acting with sole or chief emphasis on salability, profit, or success.

   a commercial product; His attitude toward the theater is very commercial.

4. able to yield or make a profit.

   We decided that the small oil well was not commercial.

5. suitable or fit for a wide, popular market.

   Communications satellites are gradually finding a commercial use.

6. suitable for or catering to business rather than private use.

   commercial kitchen design; commercial refrigeration.

7. (of a vehicle or its use)

   1. engaged in transporting passengers or goods for profit.

   2. civilian and public, as distinguished from military or private.

8. not entirely or chemically pure.

   commercial soda.

9. catering especially to traveling salespeople by offering reduced rates, space for exhibiting products, etc..

   a commercial hotel.

10. (in U.S. government grading of beef ) graded between standard and utility.

11. paid for by advertisers.

    commercial television.

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noun

1. Radio and Television. a paid advertisement or promotional announcement.

2. (in U.S. government grading of beef )

   1. a low-quality grade of beef between standard and utility.

   2. a cut of beef of this grade.

3. British Informal. a traveling salesperson.

commercial British  

/ kəˈmɜːʃəl, kəˌmɜːʃɪˈælɪtɪ /

adjective

1. of, connected with, or engaged in commerce; mercantile

2. sponsored or paid for by an advertiser

   commercial television

3. having profit as the main aim

   commercial music

4. (of goods, chemicals, etc) of unrefined quality or presentation and produced in bulk for use in industry

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noun

1. a commercially sponsored advertisement on radio or television

Related Words

Commercial, mercantile refer to the activities of business, industry, and trade. Commercial is the broader term, covering all the activities and relationships of industry and trade. In a derogatory sense it may mean such a preoccupation with the affairs of commerce as results in indifference to considerations other than wealth: commercial treaties; a merely commercial viewpoint. Mercantile applies to the purchase and sale of goods, or to the transactions of business: a mercantile house or class.

Other Word Forms

• anticommercial adjective
• anticommercially adverb
• anticommercialness noun
• commerciality noun
• commercially adverb
• countercommercial adjective
• noncommercial adjective
• noncommercially adverb
• precommercial adjective
• procommercial adjective
• quasi-commercial adjective
• quasi-commercially adverb
• semicommercial adjective
• semicommercially adverb
• supercommercial adjective
• supercommercially adverb
• ultracommercial adjective

Etymology

Origin of commercial

First recorded in 1680–90; commerce + -ial

Example Sentences

There is also a marketing and promotion element to showcasing hobbies, with commercial opportunities up for grabs with brands.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

The 32-year-old clothier regularly navigates chaotic traffic to deliver luxury clothes and footwear to customers across the megacity of Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

No commercial flights have been downed during this war, but at least five parked aircraft have been struck.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

“It was intended to be a creative space, not a home,” says LaMonica, 64, who is a commercial real estate broker.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

I made friends, held hands in a circle, mumbled along to “Kumbaya,” and now here I am in the cramped aisle of a commercial jet, traveling by myself like a fancy, mature young woman.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Related Words

• economic
• financial
• monetary
• profit-making
• profitable
• wholesale