common man
30
2.0
- noun
- /ˈkɑːmən mæn/
:
hombre corriente
- The politician promised to represent the interests of the common man in his new policy reforms.
- the language of the common man
- common men and women
However, the common man will have to deal with crime, rape, murder, drugs, human trafficking.
- However, the common man will have to deal with crime, rape, murder, drugs, human trafficking.
- This was all about, you know, doubting Wall Street, being skeptical of the things that Wall Street was thinking, you know, seeing this power in the common man.
- Like he was appealing to more of the common man who then went.
- dollar terms for most of the the common man out there,
- Tim Ryan had a weird way of connecting with a common man.
- You know, I just, I just want to know what, you know, Joe, the common man who, you know, thinks about, about this script.
- And it that's why Putin connects with the people because he he represents the common more the common man who's, who's saying to you, your interests are threatened.
- So he talks about an energetic type of common man who becomes what he calls an Ari viste, and we'll talk about that in just a moment.
Examples
-
In the presence of such faith, the common man takes on dignity, importance, and worthwhileness.
Academic text (1995) -
When will Republicans endorse the common man and quit pandering to the rich?
Blog text (1) -
Yet again, it is down to the common man.
-
I understand the common man in a way I never did before.
-
For now, they have lost their touch with the youth and the common man.
Academic text (1996) -
Your beloved common man may marry for love.
-
I'm a common man, sir.
-
Then we can elect one of our own sheriff, a common man, one of us.
-
Democratic historians celebrate Jackson as a champion of the common man.
-
Abe Lincoln is supposed to have said, "God must have loved the common man; he made so many of them."
Academic text (1990)
Synonyms
31
4.2
A person without a noble title who is an ordinary member of society
15
1.8
A regular man with no special skills or fame
13
5.3
An ordinary person with no special powers or status
10
2.5
A regular man who stands for the average person
10
2.7
An ordinary person who is not an expert
5
3.4
A regular person who shows the views of most people
1
1.4
A person who has no title and is an ordinary member of society
1
4.1
An ordinary member of the public
An average person used as a name to represent most people in Australia
A person from an ordinary family who is not part of the noble class
Antonyms
How Ordinary
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'an ordinary male person without title or special privileges' is directly compositional from 'common' (ordinary, shared) + 'man' (adult male), so a learner who knows both words can infer the MWE meaning. This is a straightforward noun phrase pattern found in many languages, making it immediately transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Common man comes from older uses of common to mean the people who shared the land or town life, not the rich or people with titles. So common + man paints a picture of an ordinary man without a title or rank, which is why it now means 'an ordinary man'.