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• commons
  commons

  noun

  (functioning as plural) people not of noble birth viewed as forming a political order
• Commons
  Commons

  noun

  See House of Commons

commons

¹ British  

/ ˈkɒmənz /

noun

1. (functioning as plural) people not of noble birth viewed as forming a political order

2. (functioning as plural) the lower classes as contrasted to the ruling classes of society; the commonalty

3. (functioning as singular) a building or hall for dining, recreation, etc, usually attached to a college

4. (usually functioning as plural) food or rations (esp in the phrase short commons )

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Commons ² British  

/ ˈkɒmənz /

noun

1. See House of Commons

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Explanation

A commons is a piece of land that belongs to everyone in a community. The commons in the middle of a village might be a green space that's available for gatherings and celebrations. One way to think of the commons is as public land or space — roadways, town parks, public beaches, and sidewalks could all potentially be defined as part of the commons. Nobody owns the commons, and when some part of it becomes privately owned, it's called privatization. The word commons comes from the Latin root communis, which means both "in common, shared by all, or general," and also "common property."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

commons Commons

I see another possible outcome with broader implications: a social-media marketing tragedy of the commons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

Unauthorized leaks aren’t as commons as they are in the music and movie industries, but they do occur.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026

Speaking in the commons after the announcement, the Labour MP for Mid Derbyshire Jonathan Davies warned the proposal to cancel the A38 project could mean the area faces an economic hit.

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

Leo writes that modern technology has wonderful benefits like the establishment and ease of worldwide interconnections, the formation of global community and solidarity via the digital commons.

From Slate ● May 28, 2026

In this way they could justify treating the Indigenous peoples in much the same ways they had been treated when the nobles displaced them from the commons.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

In the Commons, he sought to reassure you, whatever your view on Brexit.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

The Commons sits on Monday for the first time since 15 September, having been in recess during some of the party conferences.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is expected to provide an update on the incident in the Commons later.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

As part of the programme, the young politicians are allowed to hold debates in the House of Commons chamber, on a day when MPs are not sitting, once a year.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

Though the janitors in Commons rousted me every night at closing time, I doubt they ever realized they spoke to the same boy twice.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt