commonwealth

noun

com·​mon·​wealth ˈkä-mən-ˌwelth How to pronounce commonwealth (audio)
also -ˌweltth
Synonyms of commonwealthnext
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
: republic
2
: a state of the U.S.
—used officially of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia
3
often Commonwealth : 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 Commonwealth : an association of self-governing autonomous states more or less loosely associated in a common allegiance (as to the British crown)
5
Commonwealth
a
: the English state from the death of Charles I in 1649 to the Restoration in 1660
b
: protectorate sense 1b
6
Commonwealth : a federal union of constituent states
—used officially of Australia
7
archaic : commonweal sense 2

Synonyms of commonwealth

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

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.
That’s what the Democratic candidate did in her successful race for commonwealth attorney in Arlington, Virginia. — Ronald Wright, The Conversation, 27 Oct. 2026 The Northern Mariana Islands opted to become a self-governing commonwealth in association with the United States. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Oct. 2026 That is why protecting water quality is also a matter of honoring the relationship between Tribal Nations and the commonwealth of Virginia. — Dana Adkins, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026 Lucas, 82, has long been a powerful force in Virginia state politics and previously spearheaded the commonwealth's redistricting effort which was reversed by the state's Supreme Court earlier this year. — ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026 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

Rhymes for commonwealth

See All Rhymes for commonwealth

Browse Nearby Words

commonweal
commonwealth
commonwealth's-man
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Commonwealth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commonwealth. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

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
: republic
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

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about commonwealth

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of reticent

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All