different between classical vs common

English

Etymology

See classic § Etymology for history; surface analysis, class +? -ical = class + -ic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?klæs?kl?/
• Hyphenation: clas?si?cal

Adjective

classical (comparative more classical, superlative most classical)

1. Of or relating to the first class or rank, especially in literature or art.
2. Of or pertaining to established principles in a discipline.
3. (music) Describing Western music and musicians of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
4. (informal, music) Describing art music (rather than pop, jazz, blues, etc), especially when played using instruments of the orchestra.
5. Of or pertaining to the ancient Greeks and Romans, especially to Greek or Roman authors of the highest rank, or of the period when their best literature was produced; of or pertaining to places inhabited by the ancient Greeks and Romans, or rendered famous by their deeds.
   • 1853, Thomas Babington Macaulay, "Atterbury, Francis" in Encyclopædia Britannica (8th ed.). Dated through The Miscellaneous Writings and Speeches of Lord Macaulay, page 344

     He [Atterbury] directed the classical studies of the undergraduates of his college.

6. Conforming to the best authority in literature and art; chaste; pure; refined

   classical dance.

   • 1848, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume 1, page 151.

     Classical, provincial, and national synods.

7. (physics) Pertaining to models of physical laws that do not take quantum or relativistic effects into account; Newtonian or Maxwellian.
8. (cryptography) In contrast to quantum computing; pertaining to cryptographic algorithms that are not designed to resist attack by quantum computers, or cryptanalysis that does not take quantum computer capabilities into account. In some contexts may instead refer to older cryptographic algorithms, e.g. classical ciphers.

Usage notes

Various usage advisers give various prescriptions for differentiating classic from classical by word sense distinctions and by collocational idiomaticness (that is, according to the way in which certain collocations tend to use one suffix more than the other idiomatically). For example (as pointed out by various authorities, including Bryan Garner in Garner's Modern English Usage, fourth edition), classical tends to be preferred in the sense referring to "the classics" (in ancient literature, modern literature, or music), although classic also sometimes serves in this sense. For copyeditorially inclined users of English, it is useful to know the twin pair of descriptive facts that apply to many usage prescriptions: the prescriptions are not invariably followed in respectable formal writing, but nonetheless it is widely considered preferable style to avoid flouting them.

Synonyms

• classic (see Usage notes regarding differentiation.)

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

classical (countable and uncountable, plural classicals)

1. (countable) One that is classical in some way; for example, a classical economist.
   • 2002, James E Hartley, James E. Hartley, The Representative Agent in Macroeconomics, Routledge (?ISBN), page 120:

     Similarly, the new classicals never claimed to be Austrians, nor did they ever make the attempt to meet Austrian objections. Therefore, we cannot fault them for not using this methodology. Nevertheless, new classicals constantly preach […]

2. (uncountable) Short for classical music.

Further reading

• classical in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• classical at OneLook Dictionary Search
• classical, classic at Google Ngram Viewer

English

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 *gemeini, gamaini (“common”) in Old French), from Latin comm?nis (“common, public, general”), from Proto-Indo-European *?om-moy-ni- (“held in common”). Displaced native Middle English imene, ?em?ne (“common, general, universal”) (from Old English ?em?ne (“common, universal”)), Middle English mene, m?ne (“mean, common”) (also from Old English ?em?ne (“common, universal”)), Middle English samen, somen (“in common, together”) (from Old English samen (“together”)). Doublet of gmina.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: k?m'?n, IPA^(key): /?k?m?n/
• (General American) enPR: k?m'?n, IPA^(key): /?k?m?n/
• (obsolete) enPR: k?m'?n, IPA^(key): /?k?m?n/
• Rhymes: -?m?n
• Hyphenation: com?mon

Adjective

common (comparative commoner or more common, superlative commonest or most common)

1. Mutual; shared by more than one.

2. Occurring or happening regularly or frequently; usual.

3. Found in large numbers or in a large quantity; usual.

   ' Commoner' used to be commoner, but 'more common' is now more common.

4. Simple, ordinary or vulgar.
   • 1893, Florian Cajori, A History of Mathematics

     If it be asked wherein the utility of some modern extensions of mathematics lies, it must be acknowledged that it is at present difficult to see how they are ever to become applicable to questions of common life or physical science.

   • 1768, Arthur Murphy, Zenobia

     above the vulgar flight of common souls

   • She was frankly disappointed. For some reason she had thought to discover a burglar of one or another accepted type—either a dashing cracksman in full-blown evening dress, lithe, polished, pantherish, or a common yegg, a red-eyed, unshaven burly brute in the rags and tatters of a tramp.

5. (grammar) In some languages, particularly Germanic languages, of the gender originating from the coalescence of the masculine and feminine categories of nouns.
6. (grammar) Of or pertaining to common nouns as opposed to proper nouns.
7. Vernacular, referring to the name of a kind of plant or animal, i.e., common name vs. scientific name.
8. (obsolete) Profane; polluted.
9. (obsolete) Given to lewd habits; prostitute.

Synonyms

• (mutual): mutual, shared; see also Thesaurus:joint
• (usual): normal, ordinary, standard, usual; see also Thesaurus:common
• (occurring in large numbers or in a large quantity): widespread; see also Thesaurus:widespread
• (ordinary): common-or-garden, everyday; see also Thesaurus:normal
• (grammar, gender of coalescence of masculine of feminine): epicene
• (grammar, antonym of proper): appellative
• (vernacular): common parlance

Antonyms

• (mutual): personal, individual, peculiar; see also Thesaurus:sole
• (usual): special, exceptional, rare, uncommon; see also Thesaurus:strange
• (occurring in large numbers or in a large quantity): rare, uncommon, few and far between
• (ordinary): exceptional, extraordinary, noteworthy, special
• (vernacular): technical term

See also

• (grammar, gender of coalescence of masculine of feminine): feminine, masculine, neuter

Translations

Noun

common (plural commons)

1. Mutual good, shared by more than one.
2. A tract of land in common ownership; common land.
3. The people; the community.
4. (law) The right of taking a profit in the land of another, in common either with the owner or with other persons; so called from the community of interest which arises between the claimant of the right and the owner of the soil, or between the claimants and other commoners entitled to the same right.

Translations

Verb

common (third-person singular simple present commons, present participle commoning, simple past and past participle commoned)

1. (obsolete) To communicate (something).
   • 1526, William Tyndale, trans, Bible, Luke XXII:

     Then entred Satan into Judas, whose syr name was iscariot (which was of the nombre off the twelve) and he went his waye, and commened with the hye prestes and officers, how he wolde betraye hym vnto them.

2. (obsolete) To converse, talk.
   • 1568-1569, Richard Grafton, Chronicle

     Capitaine generall of Flaunders, which amiably enterteyned the sayd Duke, and after they had secretly commoned of.

3. (obsolete) To have sex.
4. (obsolete) To participate.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Sir Thomas More to this entry?)

5. (obsolete) To have a joint right with others in common ground.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Johnson to this entry?)

6. (obsolete) To board together; to eat at a table in common.

Derived terms

References

• common at OneLook Dictionary Search
• common in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
• common in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.