commonality

[kom-uh-nal-i-tee]

noun

plural

commonalities 

1. a sharing of features or characteristics in common; possession or manifestation of common attributes.

2. a feature or characteristic held in common.

   Historians perceive commonalities of behavior in many eras.

3. commonalty.

commonality

/ ˌkɒməˈnælɪtɪ /

noun

1. the fact of being common to more than one individual; commonness

2. another word for commonalty

Word History and Origins

Origin of commonality¹

1350–1400; Middle English; partial Latinization of commonalty, on basis of presumed Latin *commūnālitās ( -ity )

Example Sentences

The phrase, of disputed origin, is used to suggest a commonality between people of all creeds and races, a suggestion that people are all the same under the skin.

From BBC

"There doesn't seem to be a commonality in terms of the thresholds for the fines, sentences and the bans across Northern Ireland," she said.

From BBC

Different places, similar forces These incidents span vastly different settings—a tourist hotspot, a public health campus, a military base, city neighborhoods, a music event, and a rural bar—yet they share troubling commonalities:

From Salon

The mediums, the artists and what is created remind us of our diversity, and also reflect our commonality, in all its glorious contradiction and complication.

From Los Angeles Times

The commonalities were basically this idea that perfection is achievable, that we can reach God in that way.

From Salon