commonwealth

noun

com·​mon·​wealth ˈkä-mən-ˌwelth How to pronounce commonwealth (audio)
 also  -ˌweltth
1
: a nation, state, or other political unit: such 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
2
: a state of the U.S.
used officially of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia
3
often capitalized : a political unit having local autonomy but voluntarily united with the U.S.
used officially of Puerto Rico and of the Northern Mariana Islands
4
often capitalized : an association of self-governing autonomous states more or less loosely associated in a common allegiance (as to the British crown)
5
capitalized
a
: the English state from the death of Charles I in 1649 to the Restoration in 1660
6
capitalized : a federal union of constituent states
used officially of Australia
7
archaic : commonweal sense 2

Examples of commonwealth in a Sentence

laws that will benefit all the citizens of the commonwealth
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
And the Bluegrass State followed suit this year, as well — Kentucky was the first state called for Trump, with The Associated Press making the call just as polls closed in the western portion of the commonwealth. Lucas Aulbach, The Courier-Journal, 6 Nov. 2024 Pennsylvania’s Republican Secretary of State Al Schmidt, the state’s top election official, told CBS News on Sunday that the commonwealth has taken extra steps to fortify election security in 2024. Kevin Breuninger, CNBC, 30 Oct. 2024 Now, a network of pro-Trump organizations is pouring millions into the commonwealth to increase GOP turnout. Eric Cortellessa, TIME, 30 Oct. 2024 Advertisement An average of recent Pennsylvania polling has Trump leading by less than 1 percentage point, according to Real Clear Politics, and both candidates and their surrogates have been campaigning heavily in the commonwealth in the closing weeks of the election. Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for commonwealth 

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 7

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

Dictionary Entries Near commonwealth

Cite this Entry

“Commonwealth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commonwealth. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

commonwealth

noun
com·​mon·​wealth -ˌwelth How to pronounce commonwealth (audio)
1
: a political unit (as a nation or state)
2
: a state of the U.S.
used officially of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia

Legal Definition

commonwealth

noun
com·​mon·​wealth ˈkä-mən-ˌwelth How to pronounce commonwealth (audio)
1
: a nation, state, or other political unit: as
a
: one founded on law and united by compact or tacit agreement by the people for the common good
b
: one in which supreme authority is vested in the people
c
2
: a state of the U.S.
used officially of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia
3
often capitalized : an association of self-governing autonomous states more or less loosely associated in a common allegiance (as to the British crown)
4
often capitalized : a political unit having local autonomy but voluntarily united with the U.S.
used officially of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands

More from Merriam-Webster on commonwealth

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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