communal

[kuh-myoon-l, kom-yuh-nl]

adjective

1. used or shared in common by everyone in a group.

   a communal jug of wine.

2. of, by, or belonging to the people of a community; shared or participated in by the public.

   communal land; Building the playground was a communal project.

   Synonyms: collective, common, public

3. pertaining to a commune or a community.

   communal life.

4. engaged in by or involving two or more communities.

   communal conflict.

communal

/ ˌkɒmjʊˈnælɪtɪ, ˈkɒmjʊnəl /

adjective

1. belonging or relating to a community as a whole

2. relating to different groups within a society

   communal strife

3. of or relating to a commune or a religious community

Other Word Forms

• communally adverb
• intercommunal adjective
• noncommunal adjective
• noncommunally adverb
• uncommunal adjective
• communality noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of communal¹

First recorded in 1805–15; from French, from Latin commūnālis, equivalent to commūn(e) “community, state” + -ālis adjective suffix; commune ², -al ¹

Example Sentences

Crucially, the camps' strong communal bonds have been fractured.

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Seeing a film in what the venue calls “shared reality” can be all-encompassing and yet intimate as well as communal and, if everything works out, somewhat thoughtful.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Now, the aim is to keep layoffs even more efficient—with fewer chances for ugly public scenes or communal emoting.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"They could have called the police, that was my fear. I use my front door as little as possible because I'm afraid of any smell going into the communal area."

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But it wakes us up to the need for those solutions, and it turns our private drudgery into communal solidarity and gives us back the only commodity that ever really mattered: our time.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal