commoner

noun

com·​mon·​er ˈkä-mə-nər How to pronounce commoner (audio)
1
a
: one of the common people
b
: one who is not of noble rank
2
: a student (as at Oxford) who pays for his own board

Examples of commoner in a Sentence

a prince who married a commoner
Recent Examples on the Web But there was a lot in Franklin's path from Boston commoner to Enlightenment celebrity to feel good about, and there's a twinkle in his eye on every page. The Week Us, theweek, 17 Sep. 2024 The former upper-middle-class commoner, who married into the British royal family in 2011, has made sparing public appearances and provided a few progress reports since revealing her diagnosis. Nardine Saad, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2024 This, in turn, gave commoners leverage to demand from their rulers increased political participation, equality before the law, and better provision of public goods. Andreas Wimmer, Foreign Affairs, 12 Feb. 2019 Countless examples from the past emphasize how kings and commoners provided for the Buddha and later monks and nuns by giving land, food and donations. Mitch Hendrickson, The Conversation, 29 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for commoner 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'commoner.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of commoner was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near commoner

Cite this Entry

“Commoner.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commoner. Accessed 12 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

commoner

noun
com·​mon·​er ˈkäm-ə-nər How to pronounce commoner (audio)
: one of the common people : a person who is not of noble rank

Biographical Definition

Commoner

biographical name

Com·​mo·​ner ˈkä-mə-nər How to pronounce Commoner (audio)
Barry 1917–2012 American biologist and educator

More from Merriam-Webster on commoner

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