common

Name: common, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈkɒm.ən/

//ˈkɒm.ən// adj

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“common” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #631 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#631
frequency rank, English: 6
letters: 7
tracked misspellings: 20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Mutual; shared by more than one.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

common vs Como

50% similar

common vs coon

67% similar

common vs cotton

67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for common
Property	Value
Headword	common
Language	English
Part of speech	Adjective
IPA	/ˈkɒm.ən/
Letters	6
Frequency rank	#631
Misspellings tracked	7
Confusable pairs	20
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “common” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). common lands here:

#631

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for common is 6 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈkɒm.ən/. Corpus data places it at rank #631 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 12 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for common, with forms such as "ccommon", "cmomon", and "commno". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Como", "coon", "cotton", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English comun, from Anglo-Norman comun, from Old French comun (rare in the Gallo-Romance languages, but reinforced as a Carolingian calque of Proto-West Germanic *gamainī (“common”) in Old French), from Latin commūnis (“common, public, general”)… The correct English form is common, spelled C-O-M-M-O-N.

Definition

1
Mutual; shared by more than one.
2
Of a quality: existing among virtually all people; universal.
3
Occurring or happening regularly or frequently; usual.
4
Found in large numbers or in a large quantity; usual.
5
Simple, ordinary or vulgar.
6
As part of the vernacular name of a species, usually denoting that it is abundant or widely known.
7
Vernacular, referring to the name of a kind of plant or animal.
8
Arising from use or tradition, as opposed to being created by a legislative body.
9
Of, pertaining or belonging to the common gender.
10
Of or pertaining to common nouns as opposed to proper nouns.
11
Profane; polluted.
12
Given to lewd habits; prostitute.

Etymology

From Middle English comun, from Anglo-Norman comun, from Old French comun (rare in the Gallo-Romance languages, but reinforced as a Carolingian calque of Proto-West Germanic *gamainī (“common”) in Old French), from Latin commūnis (“common, public, general”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱom-moy-ni-s (“held in common”), from Proto-Indo-European *mey- (“to exchange, change”). Displaced native Middle English imene, ȝemǣne (“common, general, universal”) (from Old English ġemǣne (“common, universal”)), Middle English mene, mǣne (“mean, common”) (also from Old English ġemǣne (“common, universal”)), Middle English samen, somen (“in common, together”) (from Old English samen (“together”)). Doublet of gmina and mean.

Synonyms

mutual shared joint normal ordinary standard usual widespread widespread common-or-garden everyday normalgender of coalescence of masculine of feminineappellative average banal basic bog standard common common as bums common as muck commonplacecommon or garden varietyconventional dime a dozen familiar garden variety general nonrare par for the course pedestrian plain plain Janeplain vanillaquotidian regular routinary routine standard issue ten a pennytwo a pennytypical run-of-the-mill workaday

Antonyms

This word in other languages

común(Español)commun(Français)gemeinsam(Deutsch)comum(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ccommon,cmomon,commno,commonn,comomn,comon,ocmmon

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of common - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

Edit distance from "common"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "common"?

"common" is spelled C-O-M-M-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɒm.ən/.

What does "common" mean?

As an adjective, "common" means: Mutual; shared by more than one.

What words are commonly confused with "common"?

"common" is commonly confused with "Como", "coon", "cotton". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "common"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "common" is /ˈkɒm.ən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What is the origin of the word "common"?

Is PlainSpell free to use?

Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “common”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

The one correct English spelling is C-O-M-M-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ˈkɒm.ən/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Don't mix it up with “Como” - see the side-by-side comparison. common vs Como
Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.