COMMON means ordinary, frequent, shared by many, or belonging to a community. From Latin communis (shared by all). In Scrabble, COMMON scores 12 base points with valuable double M tiles.
Yes. COMMON is in the Scrabble-style word list used by our tools and scores 12 points in Scrabble, 16 in Words With Friends and 13 in Wordfeud (base tile values, no board multipliers). Always check the dictionary your game uses (NWL, Collins or the WWF list) before playing.
| Letter | C | O | M | M | O | N | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scrabble | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| Words With Friends | 4 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 16 |
| Wordfeud | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 13 |
COMMON embodies the paradox of human existence: we celebrate uniqueness while craving belonging. This six-letter word captures everything from shared resources to ordinary experiences, from mutual understanding to mediocrity. It's the linguistic bridge between "community" and "commonplace," revealing how language shapes our perception of what unites and divides us.
The commons—shared resources like air, water, and public spaces—represent humanity's oldest economic system. Before private property, everything was common. Medieval villages had common lands for grazing; knowledge was held in common by guilds. Today's digital commons (Wikipedia, open-source software) echo ancient sharing traditions. The "tragedy of the commons" warns that shared resources face overuse without regulation. Yet commons also enable innovation—the internet itself is humanity's greatest common resource.
"Common sense" supposedly means obvious wisdom everyone shares. Thomas Paine's "Common Sense" pamphlet sparked American independence by appealing to colonists' shared reasoning. Yet what's "common sense" varies wildly across cultures. Japanese common sense includes removing shoes indoors; American common sense includes tipping servers. This cultural specificity reveals how "common" often means "familiar to my group" rather than truly universal.
"Common" derives from Latin "communis" meaning "shared by all" or "general." The root combines "com-" (together) with "munis" (bound by obligation), literally "bound together." This reflects the word's core meaning of shared belonging.
Anagrams: no other word uses exactly the letters of COMMON.
Hooks: no front hooks; back COMMONS.
Words inside COMMON: 17 shorter words can be made from these letters – highest scoring: MOCMOMCOONMMMONOMOONCONCOOMONMOONOMMO. See all words from COMMON.