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• commune
  commune

  verb (used without object)

  to converse or talk together, usually with profound intensity, intimacy, etc.; interchange thoughts or feelings.
• Commune
  Commune

  noun

  See Paris Commune

commune

¹ American  

[kuh-myoon, kom-yoon] / kəˈmjun, ˈkɒm jun /

verb (used without object)

communed, communing

1. to converse or talk together, usually with profound intensity, intimacy, etc.; interchange thoughts or feelings.

2. to be in intimate communication or rapport.

   to commune with nature.

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noun

1. interchange of ideas or sentiments.

commune ² American  

[kom-yoon] / ˈkɒm jun /

noun

1. a small group of persons living together, sharing possessions, work, income, etc., and often pursuing unconventional lifestyles.

2. a close-knit community of people who share common interests.

3. the smallest administrative division in France, Italy, Switzerland, etc., governed by a mayor assisted by a municipal council.

4. a similar division in some other country.

5. any community organized for the protection and promotion of local interests, and subordinate to the state.

6. the government or citizens of a commune.

7. people's commune.

8. Also called Commune of Paris, Paris Commune. the Commune.

   1. a revolutionary committee that took the place of the municipality of Paris in the revolution of 1789, usurped the authority of the state, and was suppressed by the National Convention in 1794.

   2. a socialistic government of Paris from March 18 to May 27, 1871.

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commune ³ American  

[kuh-myoon] / kəˈmjun /

verb (used without object)

communed, communing

1. to partake of the Eucharist.

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commune ¹ British  

/ ˈkɒmjuːn /

noun

1. a group of families or individuals living together and sharing possessions and responsibilities

2. any small group of people having common interests or responsibilities

3. the smallest administrative unit in Belgium, France, Italy, and Switzerland, governed by a mayor and council

4. the government or inhabitants of a commune

5. a medieval town enjoying a large degree of autonomy

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commune ² British  

verb

1. to talk or converse intimately

2. to experience strong emotion or spiritual feelings (for)

   to commune with nature

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noun

1. intimate conversation; exchange of thoughts; communion

Commune ³ British  

/ ˈkɒmjuːn /

noun

1. See Paris Commune

2. a committee that governed Paris during the French Revolution and played a leading role in the Reign of Terror: suppressed 1794

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commune ⁴ British  

/ kəˈmjuːn /

verb

1. (intr) Christianity to partake of Communion

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Other Word Forms

• communer
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of commune¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English com(m)unen “to share, have in common, associate with, tell stories, communicate,” from Middle French com(m)uner, com(m)uniier “to make common, have in common, share,” derivative of comun common

Origin of commune²

First recorded in 1785–95; from French, from Medieval Latin commūna, commūnia (feminine singular), alteration of Latin commūne (neuter singular), or commūnia (neuter plural) “community, state,” originally neuter of commūnis common

Origin of commune³

First recorded in 1325–1375; Middle English; back formation from communion

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Explanation

A commune is a group living situation where people share everything. Communes were popular with the peace-loving hippies of the 1960s. In Europe, a commune is a small administrative district. But in America, it's a way of life. A bunch of people with similar beliefs might all decide to get a big house and live communally, sharing the cooking, bills, and everything else. You can also commune with something, like nature: that means to be in tune with nature and very receptive to it. To commune can also mean to receive the Catholic communion.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

commune Commune communed communing

Even Lukas Graham cited the band’s roots in Christiania, a Danish enclave with a history as an anarchist commune, as an example they’re following by bailing on this tour.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

Lan was an early adopter, diversifying his crop two decades ago and now boasting 400 durian trees in Ea Knuec commune, part of Dak Lak province.

From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026

After the explosion at an apartment building near Monaco's border with France, a suspect was seen fleeing towards the French commune of Beausoleil.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

He also visits a religious commune and witnesses actual generosity only to remain apathetic about repentance or emotional growth.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026

They’d had an artists’ commune of two, and when Van Rappard left, Vincent knew he wanted that camaraderie again, with Van Rappard, and someday with others.

From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman

Indeed, the listing further notes that additional updates to the property were made by “Breaking Bad” star Aaron Paul, who worked with the design studio Commune Design to carry out a renovation in 2019.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026

Izabela Jurkowska-Hanus, the district prosecutor in Sanok, which covers Bukowsko Commune, told TVN24 that as of that time, there were no other circumstances that suggest a cause of death other than the one reported.

From BBC ● Apr. 23, 2026

In St. Louis, strike committees, the so-called St. Louis Commune, briefly governed before troops crushed the uprising.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 30, 2025

Later this year, Commune, a residential housing developer based in France, will open a development for single-parent households in the Paris suburbs with space for 14 families.

From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2023

“He’s right up there with our brightest and best. Commune or no, he’s been very well educated by someone.”

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

“The Greeks believed that sleeping on a grave might give you dreams in which you communed with a spirit,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2025

Worshippers have already prayed and communed at the site on Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island, while the general public will be allowed in next month.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 21, 2023

Years later, Morris communed with JFK’s memory regularly, as a volunteer tour guide at the Kennedy Center.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 20, 2021

To paleoanthropologists, especially those leaning toward magico-religious explanations, such spaces inevitably suggest rituals, making the decorated cave a kind of cathedral within which humans communed with a higher power.

From The Guardian ● Dec. 12, 2019

The coffin was carried on a horse-drawn wagon to the cemetery, and all the way I communed with death’s angels, questioning their choice of time, place and person.

From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou

Mr. Hayward isn’t trying to impress Lizzie Bennet; he’s communing with Mary, in all of her meek and geeky glory.

From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026

Post-release he lives in self-exile in Bangkok, communing online with clients back in Myanmar.

From Barron's ● Dec. 21, 2025

Although there are no figurative features at all, they appear to be communing among themselves and with you.

From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2025

The car robs us of our innocence, and we can only recapture that by communing and reintroducing ourselves to the natural world.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 14, 2024

Of course Abel took to communing again with Amanda, and by April he was rather sure they were in touch with each other.

From "Abel's Island" by William Steig

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