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Glite Dictionary
common year

common year

1 1.3
A year with 365 days and no extra day in February
  • noun
translation icon : año común
  • During a typical common year, February has 28 days.

Examples

  • A common year has 365 days, while a leap year has 366 days.

  • "Common year."

    One Night with the King (2006)

  • Like the Silver Eagles, the one-ounce bullion strikes sell for a relatively modest premium for the most common years, although there are a few exceptions depending on the total mintage.

    Blog text (27)

  • The calendar shows that this is a common year, not a leap year.

Antonyms

leap year
5 1.8

A year that happens every four years and has 366 days

Surface Forms

common year singular
common years plural

Morphology

common + year

The phrase 'common year' is compositionally transparent: 'common' (ordinary/usual) + 'year' yields the ordinary (non-leap) year of 365 days. This calendrical use is straightforward and mirrors equivalents in other languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Common year uses common to mean 'ordinary' and year for the calendar year, creating a simple image of a plain, usual year. So, it means 'a year with 365 days', not a leap year with an extra day.