commutation

American  

[kom-yuh-tey-shuhn] / ˌkɒm yəˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of substituting one thing for another; substitution; exchange.

2. the changing of a prison sentence or other penalty to another less severe.

3. the act of commuting, as to and from a place of work.

4. the substitution of one kind of payment for another.

5. Electricity. the act or process of commutating.

6. Also called commutation test.  Linguistics. the technique, especially in phonological analysis, of substituting one linguistic item for another while keeping the surrounding elements constant, used as a means of determining the constituent units in a sequence and their contrasts with other units.

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commutation British  

/ ˌkɒmjʊˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. a substitution or exchange

2. 1. the replacement of one method of payment by another

   2. the payment substituted

3. the reduction in severity of a penalty imposed by law

4. the process of commutating an electric current

5. the travelling done by a commuter

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Other Word Forms

• procommutation adjective

Etymology

Origin of commutation

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English commutacioun, from Latin commūtātiōn-, stem of commutātiō “change”; equivalent to commute + -ation

Example Sentences

And what were the trial errors cited as a reason for the commutation?

From Los Angeles Times

Pardons or commutations were issued for more than 1,500 people.

From BBC

According to reports, she is working on a commutation application.

From Salon

Those clemencies came on top of the commutation awarded last month to George Santos, the disgraced former New York congressman found guilty of defrauding donors and lying to the House of Representatives.

From Salon

It’s the second time that Santos has brought up Jesus in relation to his sentence commutation.

From Salon