commonwealth

Main Entry:: com·mon·wealth
Pronunciation:: \-ˌwelth also -ˌweltth\
Function:: noun
Date:: 15th century

1archaic : commonweal 22: a nation, state, or other political unit: as a: one founded on law and united by compact or tacit agreement of the people for the common good b: one in which supreme authority is vested in the people c: republic 3capitalized a: the English state from the death of Charles I in 1649 to the Restoration in 1660 b: protectorate 1b4: a state of the United States —used officially of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia5capitalized : a federal union of constituent states —used officially of Australia6often capitalized : an association of self-governing autonomous states more or less loosely associated in a common allegiance (as to the British crown)7often capitalized : a political unit having local autonomy but voluntarily united with the United States —used officially of Puerto Rico and of the Northern Mariana Islands

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