commute
verb (used with object)
to change (a prison sentence or other penalty) to a less severe one.
commuted
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past participleof commute.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
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past tense formof commute.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
commuteverb (used with object)to change (a prison sentence or other penalty) to a less severe one.
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.
After a stint in a Tehran prison, Iran’s judiciary commuted his sentence two years ago, and Zanjani returned to the regime’s service as their premier moneyman, the Journal previously reported.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
She was sentenced to death, but that sentence was commuted to life in prison with the possibility of parole after the death penalty was ruled unconstitutional in 1972.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
There is legal precedent for a death sentence to be commuted due to a botched execution combined with an inmate's poor medical state.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
For example, Jason Galanis, who pled guilty to defrauding the Oglala Sioux Nation, had paid just over $2 million of his $80 million restitution before his sentence was commuted and the restitution erased in 2025.
From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2026
Our five-year sentence had been commuted to house arrest.
From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez
