commune

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English commune, comune, from Old French comune, commune, from Medieval Latin commūnia, from Latin commūne (“community, state”), from commūnis (“common”). Doublet of comune. See also community, communion, common.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: kŏm'yo͞on, IPA^(key): /ˈkɒmjuːn/
• (US) enPR: käm'yo͞on, IPA^(key): /ˈkɑmjuːn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

English Wikipedia has an article on:

commune

Wikipedia

commune (countable and uncountable, plural communes)

1. A small community, often rural, whose members share in the ownership of property, and in the division of labour; the members of such a community.
   • 1975, Peter J. Seybolt, editor, The Rustication of Urban Youth in China‎, published 2015, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 148:

     The town of Chu-chou in Hunan Province, carrying out the great directive of Chairman Mao that "educated youths must go to the villages," has put into practice factory-commune links, and under the leadership of cadres, has made a collective settlement of educated youths in commune and brigade farms, forest areas, and tea plantations.

2. A local political division in many European countries.
3. (obsolete) The commonalty; the common people.
4. (uncountable, obsolete) Communion; sympathetic conversation between friends.
   • 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, , →OCLC, (please specify |part=Prologue or Rpilogue, or |canto=I to CXXIX):

     For days of happy commune dead.

5. (historical) A self-governing city or league of citizens.
   • 1997, David Nicholas, The Growth of the Medieval City: From Late Antiquity to the Early Fourteenth Century, →ISBN, page 161:

     In 1117 the commune and archbishop had separate consuls at Milan.

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English communen, comunen, from Old French comunier, communier (“to share”), from Latin commūnico. Doublet of communicate.

Pronunciation

• enPR: kəmyo͞on', IPA^(key): /kəˈmjuːn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uːn

Verb

commune (third-person singular simple present communes, present participle communing, simple past and past participle communed)

1. To converse together with sympathy and confidence; to interchange sentiments or feelings; to take counsel.
   • c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Measure for Measure”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     I would commune with you of such things / That want no ear but yours.

2. (intransitive, followed by with) To communicate (with) spiritually; to be together (with); to contemplate or absorb.

   He spent a week in the backcountry, communing with nature.

3. (Christianity, intransitive) To receive the communion.
   • 1681, Gilbert Burnet, “ Book I.”, in The History of the Reformation of the Church of England. The Second Part, , London: T H for Richard Chiswell, , →OCLC, page 207:

     Namely, in these things, in prohibiting that none should commune alone, in making the People whole Communers, or in suffering them to Commune under both kinds […]

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch commune, from Old French commune, from Latin .

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌkɔˈmynə/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: com‧mu‧ne
• Rhymes: -ynə

Noun

commune f (plural communes, diminutive communetje n)

1. A commune (community living together with common property).

Descendants

• → Indonesian: komune

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɔ.myn/

• audio

  (file)

Etymology 1

English Wikipedia has an article on:

Commune in France

Wikipedia

Borrowed from Medieval Latin communia, neuter plural of communis.

Noun

commune f (plural communes)

1. commune (administrative subdivision)

Descendants

Etymology 2

Adjective

commune

1. feminine singular of commun

Further reading

• “commune”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé , 2012.

Italian

Adjective

commune (plural communi)

1. (obsolete) Alternative form of comune

Noun

commune m (plural communi)

1. (obsolete) Alternative form of comune

Derived terms

• communità

Latin

Noun

commūne n (genitive commūnis); third declension

1. joint, common or public property and rights
2. public places and interests
3. common feature, characteristic, general rule or terms
4. general
5. (Medieval Latin) league or corporation of citizens
6. (Medieval Latin) a universal tax

Declension

Third-declension noun (neuter, “pure” i-stem).

Adjective

commūne

1. nominative/accusative/vocative neuter singular of commūnis

References

• “commune”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “commune”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• commune in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• commune in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎, London: Macmillan and Co.
  • (ambiguous) we know from experience: usu rerum (vitae, vitae communis) edocti sumus
    
  • (ambiguous) unanimously: uno, communi, summo or omnium consensu (Tusc. 1. 15. 35)
    
  • (ambiguous) the ordinary usage of language, everyday speech: communis sermonis consuetudo
    
  • (ambiguous) to be always considering what people think: multum communi hominum opinioni tribuere
    
• Online Latin dictionary, Olivetti

Middle English

Noun

commune

1. commons; citizenry
   • late 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Clerk's Tale, The Canterbury Tales, line 69-70:

     [...] Biloved and drad, thurgh favour of fortune,
     Bothe of his lordes and of his commune.

     Beloved and feared, through favor of fortune,
     Both by his lords and by his citizenry.