Commune

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈkɒmjuːn/

Definitions

1. A small, intentional community where people live together and share resources, responsibilities, and often a common ideology or lifestyle
2. A collective living arrangement in which individuals or families share daily tasks, resources, and responsibilities while often holding similar beliefs and values
3. A community characterized by shared ownership of property and cooperative engagement in activities, fostering social and ideological closeness among its members

Etymology: The noun "commune" traces back to the Latin "commūne," meaning "community" or "state," which itself grew from "commūnis," meaning "common." That shared root is why the English word sits so close to "community," "communion," and "common." The noun reached Middle English through Old French "comune," and the verb came from a separate Old French form that meant "to share," which in turn came from Latin "commūnico," the source of "communicate." So the verb and noun are cousins that took different routes into English. The older sense of "commune" was civic rather than domestic. Medieval French towns organised themselves as "communes," self-governing bodies of citizens who banded together for mutual protection and rights. The modern meaning, a small group living together and sharing everything, grew out of that idea of people bound together by common ownership and purpose.

Synonyms: community, collective, association

Antonyms: individual, solitude