commune

What it means

1. countableuncountableA small community, often rural, whose members share in the ownership of property, and in the division of labour; the members of such a community.

   1 more example

   The town of Chu-chou in Hunan Province, carrying out the great directive of Chairman Mao that "educated youths must go to the villages," has put into practice factory-commune links, and under the leadership of cadres, has made a collective settlement of educated youths in commune and brigade farms, forest areas, and tea plantations.

   1975, Peter J. Seybolt, editor, The Rustication of Urban Youth in China, published 2015, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 148

2. countableuncountableA local political division in many European countries as well as their former colonies (such as Chile and Vietnam).
3. countableobsoleteuncountableThe commonalty; the common people.

In a sentence

The town of Chu-chou in Hunan Province, carrying out the great directive of Chairman Mao that "educated youths must go to the villages," has put into practice factory-commune links, and under the leadership of cadres, has made a collective settlement of educated youths in commune and brigade farms, forest areas, and tea plantations.

1975, Peter J. Seybolt, editor, The Rustication of Urban Youth in China, published 2015, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 148

Where it comes from

1. Latincommūne“community, state”
2. Medieval Latincommūnia
3. Old Frenchcomune
4. Middle Englishcommune
5. Englishcommune

From Middle English commune, comune, from Old French comune, commune, from Medieval Latin commūnia, from Latin commūne (“community, state”), from commūnis (“common”). Doublet of comune. See also community, communion, common.