commoner

noun

com·​mon·​er ˈkä-mə-nər 

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

Synonyms of commoner

• populace
• public
• people
• crowd
• commons

Examples of commoner in a Sentence

a prince who married a commoner

Recent Examples on the Web

Later that same month, King Charles stripped Andrew of all of his royal titles and privileges, rendering him a commoner. —Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 5 Mar. 2026

Duncan defied his father’s wishes and broke off an engagement with Lyonel Baratheon’s daughter to marry a commoner, Jaehaerys and Shaera had a traditionally incestuous Targaryen relationship, and Daeron died in battle. —James Grebey, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026

Last week, Andrew spent his first birthday as a commoner in circumstances as degraded as earlier celebrations had been grand. —Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 21 Feb. 2026

Landowners seeking cheap labor thought carefully about how to deprive commoners of an independent means of subsistence. —Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

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

Phrases Containing commoner

• gentleman-commoner

Kids Definition

commoner

noun

com·​mon·​er ˈkäm-ə-nər 

: one of the common people : a person who is not of noble rank

Biographical Definition

Commoner

biographical name

Com·​mo·​ner ˈkä-mə-nər 

Barry 1917–2012 American biologist and educator