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Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective common contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of common are familiar, ordinary, plain, popular, and vulgar. While all these words mean "generally met with and not in any way special, strange, or unusual," common implies usual everyday quality or frequency of occurrence and may additionally suggest inferiority or coarseness.

a common error
lacked common honesty
common manners

When would familiar be a good substitute for common?

The words familiar and common are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, familiar stresses the fact of being generally known and easily recognized.

a familiar melody

In what contexts can ordinary take the place of common?

The meanings of ordinary and common largely overlap; however, ordinary stresses conformance in quality or kind with the regular order of things.

an ordinary pleasant summer day
a very ordinary sort of man

When is plain a more appropriate choice than common?

While in some cases nearly identical to common, plain is likely to suggest homely simplicity.

plain hard-working people

When might popular be a better fit than common?

Although the words popular and common have much in common, popular applies to what is accepted by or prevalent among people in general sometimes in contrast to upper classes or special groups.

a writer of popular romances

How do vulgar and popular relate to one another, in the sense of common?

Vulgar, otherwise similar to popular, is likely to carry derogatory connotations (as of inferiority or coarseness).

souvenirs designed to appeal to the vulgar taste

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of common Because water is one of the most common molecules in the universe, its presence in HD 181327's debris disk is not a surprise. Keith Cooper, Space.com, 19 May 2025 Key Takeaways Anxiety is common and can impact daily life. Julie Marks, Verywell Health, 19 May 2025 Prostate cancer is common in older men, with the NCI estimating that about 1 in 8 males in the U.S. will be diagnosed with the disease. Chad De Guzman, Time, 19 May 2025 And climate change is causing dangerous weather to get more common. Rebecca Hersher, NPR, 19 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for common
Recent Examples of Synonyms for common
Adjective
  • The trend became so ubiquitous that the Democratic presidential candidate and former vice president Kamala Harris was declared brat by Charli herself.
    Marina Watts, People.com, 21 May 2025
  • Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
    Jason Lipshutz, Billboard, 21 May 2025
Adjective
  • In a revealing interview on Insight With Chris Van Vliet, Omos detailed his journey from assuming his rapid growth was normal to facing a critical health crisis.
    Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 May 2025
  • Most kids use pacifiers—and up to a certain point, that's totally normal.
    ​Wendy Wisner, Parents, 29 May 2025
Adjective
  • This misguided individual, as well as others, hold a general population accountable for the actions of an entire nation.
    Diane Gensler, Baltimore Sun, 26 May 2025
  • Oilers general manager Stan Bowman never really tried.
    Pierre LeBrun, New York Times, 26 May 2025
Adjective
  • Abarth is low cost, high return and should be encouraged.
    Mark Phelan, USA Today, 20 May 2025
  • In stock markets abroad, indexes were mostly lower across Europe and Asia.
    Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 19 May 2025
Adjective
  • Ukraine’s Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko said on May 22 that the plan would strengthen Europe’s collective defense and reduce the long-term cost of containing Russian aggression.
    Katya Soldak, Forbes.com, 24 May 2025
  • That money was to be held in trust for the collective benefit of tribes.
    Graham Lee Brewer, Los Angeles Times, 24 May 2025
Adjective
  • Be Strategic with Equity Compensation When Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) vest, the value is treated as ordinary income and taxed immediately.
    Malana VanTyler, USA Today, 20 May 2025
  • So many aspects of this Holy Father are just so ordinary.
    Edward Keegan, Chicago Tribune, 18 May 2025
Adjective
  • The original doesn’t go that deeply into it, but this poor girl was essentially forced to be a teen mom at this time in her life when all of her friends would be graduating high school and dating and thinking about their futures.
    Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 24 May 2025
  • The product was released in 2023 to a poor reception, and discontinued before the company began winding down operations in February.
    Tom Huddleston Jr., CNBC, 24 May 2025
Adjective
  • In that sense, the vulgar Vader situation creates a touchy dilemma for Epic Games and Disney, which likely invested substantially in this high-profile collaboration.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 16 May 2025
  • Amid the attention, the new pontiff's eldest brother has drawn scrutiny for social media posts praising Trump and using inflammatory, vulgar rhetoric toward Democrats and transgender people.
    Mandy Taheri, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Common.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/common. Accessed 2 Jun. 2025.

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