commonly
Americanadverb
-
often; frequently.
commonly used words.
-
usually; generally; ordinarily.
- Synonyms:
- routinely, customarily, normally
-
in a common manner.
adverb
-
usually; ordinarily
he was commonly known as Joe
-
derogatory in a coarse or vulgar way
she dresses commonly
Etymology
Origin of commonly
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English communeli(che); equivalent to common + -ly
Explanation
The adverb commonly is good for talking about something that usually or ordinarily happens. Mice, for example, are commonly afraid of cats. Commonly describes an action that's to be expected. You could say that the bus commonly picks you up fifteen minutes late, or that colds and flu are commonly passed around between kids at school. The earliest use of commonly, around 1300, was to mean "in a way common to all," from the adjective common, or "belonging to all." The Latin root communis means "in common, public, or shared by all or many."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The conditions included metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease, commonly known as fatty liver disease, and cirrhosis, a serious condition involving extensive scarring of the liver.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026
According to the trade group, the most commonly accepted use was writing cover letters or CVs, followed by completing online application questions.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
While hydrogen breath tests conducted at home are commonly used to diagnose lactose intolerance, Shaukat says they produce a lot of false positives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
Russell Kirk and Friedrich Hayek held views that seem irreconcilable, but they both adhered more closely to fusionist principles than is commonly understood.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
In it he observed that wilderness as it was commonly understood simply did not exist in the eastern United States, and had not existed for thousands of years.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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