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communal

adjective

Simple meaning

Defined by religious ideas.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

kuhmyoonuhl

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

kəmˈjunəl

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

adjective

  1. Relating to a small administrative district or community

    “Communal elections in several European countries.”

  2. Shared by a community; public.

  3. Pertaining to a community or a commune.

  4. india

    Defined by religious ideas; based on religion.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency
Moderately Common
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Relating to a small administrative district or community

Used this way, communal is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It stays understated rather than dramatic. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Heard in a sentence
“Communal elections in several European countries.”
Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Mild
How common
Common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

communal lifecommunal landcommunal livingcommunal violencecommunal propertycommunal ownershipcommunal harmonycommunal identity

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • communitynounDerived noun · specialist

    A group of people living in a particular local area.

  • communismnounDerived noun · specialist

    A form of socialism that abolishes private ownership.

  • communistadjectiveDerived adjective

    Related to Relating to a small administrative district or community.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.