commercial

adjective com·mer·cial \ kə-ˈmər-shəl \

|Updated on: 10 Aug 2018

Examples: commercial in a Sentence

Definition of commercial

1 a (1) : occupied with or engaged in commerce or work intended for commerce

a commercial artist

(2) : of or relating to commerce

commercial regulations

commercial services

(3) : characteristic of commerce

commercial weights

(4) : suitable, adequate, or prepared for commerce

found oil in commercial quantities

b (1) : being of an average or inferior quality

commercial oxalic acid

show-quality versus commercial cattle

(2) : producing artistic work of low standards for quick market success

2 a : viewed with regard to profit

a commercial success

of no commercial value

b : designed for a large market

commercial coffee production

3 : emphasizing skills and subjects useful in business

a commercial school

4 : supported by advertisers

commercial TV

—

commerciality

play \kə-ˌmər-shē-ˈa-lə-tē\ noun

—

commercially

play \kə-ˈmər-sh(ə-)lē\ adverb

See commercial defined for English-language learners

See commercial defined for kids

Examples of commercial in a Sentence

Their music is too commercial.
The average American sees and hears thousands of commercial messages each day.

Recent Examples of commercial from the Web

But Cobb wants to expand and add a 25-yard, three-lane shooting range as the business relocates to one of the two new commercial buildings going up as part of the Palumbo development.

— erin sauder, Elgin Courier-News, "East Dundee to get another gun range," 13 July 2018
Best Buy Carpet and Granite plans to build a 15,100-square-foot commercial building south of the existing church.

— erin hegarty, Naperville Sun, "Naperville to consider annexing Route 59 church to make way for commerical development," 12 July 2018
Based in Milwaukee, A. O. Smith Corp. manufactures residential and commercial water heating equipment, as well as water treatment and air purification products.

— stephanie morse, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Kevin Wheeler to become next CEO of Milwaukee water technology company A.O. Smith," 11 July 2018
In order to perform any kind of demolition work of residential or commercial structures in Detroit, companies are required to obtain a wrecking license.

— katrease stafford, Detroit Free Press, "Concerns raised about contractors sitting on Detroit wrecking board," 9 July 2018
The restaurant is in line with current village efforts to create a greater residential and commercial mix in the circular area, which includes Village Hall and other municipal buildings.

— staff report, chicagotribune.com, "Eggsperience heading to Elmwood Park's Circle area," 9 July 2018
Coastal flooding, Imperial Beach city officials said, will lead to $38 million in damages to residential and commercial buildings and erosion will affect property valued at more than $106 million.

— rob nikolewski, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Imperial Beach pushes forward with lawsuit against oil companies," 27 June 2018
The mixed residential and commercial building features a series of hanging gardens that clad the exteriors of its two residential towers with more than 85,000 plants, and includes 22 interior green walls.

— ken wells, WSJ, "More Buildings Are Going Green. Literally.," 26 June 2018
Will County had the most development of natural and agricultural lands of any county in the region, adding more than 45,000 acres of residential, commercial, and industrial development, the plan stated.

— susan demar lafferty, Daily Southtown, "CMAP plan draws variety of comments," 14 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'commercial.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of commercial

see ¹commerce

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1598

in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

See Words from the same year

commercial Synonyms

Other Business Terms

amortize, caveat emptor, clearinghouse, divest, due diligence, emolument, green-collar, marque, overhead, perquisite

commercial

noun

Definition of commercial

: an advertisement on radio or television

See commercial defined for English-language learners

Examples of commercial in a Sentence

a commercial for a new kind of soap

Recent Examples of commercial from the Web

While shooting a Cap’n Crunch TV commercial in Los Angeles, Frees was given a message.

— randall g. mielke, Aurora Beacon-News, "'American Psychic' helps connect people with departed loved ones," 5 July 2018
Each candidate ran multiple commercials on local stations touting their campaigns and, in some cases, attacking one another.

— pamela wood, baltimoresun.com, "Baltimore County Democrats spent nearly $1.7M on TV ads in primary," 14 July 2018
Tom Briggs of Creative License encouraged artists to take a critical look at their work and see what might best fit a commercial.

— jessica lipsky, Billboard, "LAMC: Brands, Film & TV Increasingly Looking Beyond Mainstream Latin Artists," 13 July 2018
Sadly, there just aren’t that many underpants commercials.

— aurelie corinthios, PEOPLE.com, "New Game Show Will Pay Off Winners' Student Debt: 'An Absurd Show to Match an Absurd Crisis'," 10 July 2018
As CEO of Sports Studios, based in Torrance, Calif., Koesterer is responsible for sourcing and outfitting all sports materials for a variety of movies, television shows and commercials.

— jeremy fuchs, SI.com, "A Tour of Sports Movie Memorabilia Heaven," 6 July 2018
In a Volkswagen commercial running during TV coverage of the World Cup, soccer fans from countries around the globe are seen inviting U.S. fans to start rooting for their teams.

— stephen battaglio, latimes.com, "Ratings are down, but Telemundo and Fox are making the best of a U.S.-free World Cup," 6 July 2018
The boys’ acting career was short — including only a few casting calls and a subsequent appearance with other twins in a SeaWorld commercial involving celebrity twins Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.

— diane bell, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Tom Cruise movie sequel takes off without San Diego's "Top Gun" twins.," 6 July 2018
KFC of South Africa is trying to capitalize on this World Cup notoriety in a recent commercial that appears to mock Neymar’s rolling.

— sarah gray, Fortune, "South African KFC Commercial Mocks Neymar's World Cup Rolling. Check it Out," 5 July 2018

First Known Use of commercial

1935

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Broadcasting Terms

continuity, dissolve, fade, feed, remote, residual, spike, wipe

COMMERCIAL Defined for English Language Learners

commercial

adjective

Definition of commercial for English Language Learners

: related to or used in the buying and selling of goods and services
: concerned with earning money
: relating to or based on the amount of profit that something earns

commercial

noun

Definition of commercial for English Language Learners

: an advertisement on radio or television

COMMERCIAL Defined for Kids

commercial

noun com·mer·cial \ kə-ˈmər-shəl \

Definition of commercial for Students

: an advertisement broadcast on radio or television

commercial

adjective

Definition of commercial for Students

1 : having to do with the buying and selling of goods and services

2 : used to earn a profit

a commercial jet

—

commercially

adverb

Law Dictionary

commercial

adjective com·mer·cial

legal Definition of commercial

: of or relating to commerce

commercial regulations

—

commercially

adverb

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commercial

Definition of commercial

commerciality

commercially

Examples of commercial in a Sentence

Recent Examples of commercial from the Web

Origin and Etymology of commercial

commercial Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Other Business Terms

commercial

Definition of commercial

Examples of commercial in a Sentence

Recent Examples of commercial from the Web

First Known Use of commercial

Other Broadcasting Terms

Phrases Related to COMMERCIAL

Related Phrases

COMMERCIAL Defined for English Language Learners

commercial

Definition of commercial for English Language Learners

commercial

Definition of commercial for English Language Learners

COMMERCIAL Defined for Kids

commercial

Definition of commercial for Students

commercial

Definition of commercial for Students

commercially

Law Dictionary

commercial

legal Definition of commercial

commercially

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