Community
Shared place, shared trait, or unity someone wants you to feel.
How We Say It
kΙΒ·myooΒ·niΒ·tee
Where It Comes From
Latin communitas β fellowship, from communis β common, shared. Related to commune and communication. Originally implied actual shared life and mutual obligation, not just shared identity.
How It's Been Used
Expanded and hollowed simultaneously. 'The community' now refers to everyone from a ZIP code's residents to a Reddit forum. Used in political speech to imply solidarity without specifying it. 'Community standards,' 'community policing,' 'community college' β each use carries different assumptions.