commutation

noun

com·​mu·​ta·​tion ˌkäm-yə-ˈtā-shən 

-yü-

1

: exchange, trade

2

: replacement

specifically : a substitution of one form of payment or charge for another

a commutation by money payment for the exacted service

3

: a change of a legal penalty or punishment to a lesser one

commutation of a death sentence

4

: an act or process of commuting

… a ridge of hills makes daily commutation to San Francisco arduous.

—The New York Times

5

: the action of commutating

Synonyms

• exchange

Examples of commutation in a Sentence

He appealed for a commutation of his death sentence to life imprisonment.

an international commutation of food for oil

Recent Examples on the Web

Nor has any death row prisoner received a commutation since Bob Graham granted one for the last time in 1983. —Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 23 June 2025

Additional commutations and pardons included Hunter Biden associate Jason Galanis, Ozy Media founder Carlos Watson, and former Arkansas state Senator Jeremy Hutchinson, according to CBS News. —Peter Aitken alia Shoaib, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 June 2025

Joe Sotelo Joe Sotelo received commutation of his life sentence. —Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 29 May 2025

Among those who received commutations was Refugio Castillo. —Taryn Luna, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English commutacion, from Anglo-French, from Latin commutation-, commutatio, from commutare

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing commutation

• commutation ticket

Rhymes for commutation

• abdication
• aberration
• abjuration
• abnegation
• abrogation
• acceptation
• acclamation
• acclimation
• accusation
• activation
• actuation
• acylation

Kids Definition

commutation

noun

com·​mu·​ta·​tion ˌkäm-yə-ˈtā-shən 

1

: exchange entry 1 sense 2, replacement

2

: a reduction of a legal penalty

3

: an act of commuting

4

: the process of reversing the direction of an electric circuit