the Commonwealth

noun

1
: a U.S. state
used officially of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia
the Commonwealth of Kentucky
2
: the countries that were once part of the British Empire

Examples of the Commonwealth in a Sentence

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 left national political commentators wondering about the state of affairs in the Commonwealth. Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald, 3 Apr. 2026 Prince William, Kate and baby George spent Easter in Australia in 2014 during their royal tour of the Commonwealth realm, where Kate wore the pale coat dress by her bridal designer with the Jane Taylor ribbon hat. Janine Henni, PEOPLE, 3 Apr. 2026 On that July day, a CETI team of scientists and technicians — including drone operators, programmers and acoustics experts — were on the open ocean in waters near the Commonwealth of Dominica. Mindy Weisberger, CNN Money, 30 Mar. 2026 The type of hospital services that states will assess matters, said Tony Shih, a senior adviser at the Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit focused on making health care more equitable. Aaron Bolton, NPR, 26 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for the Commonwealth

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“The Commonwealth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20Commonwealth. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster