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activity (such as factories, banks, and farming) should be owned or controlled by the government
CULTURAL NOTE The former SOVIET UNION and most countries of Eastern Europe were governed by a Communist Party until the beginning of the 1990s. China is still ruled by its Communist Party and many countries in the world still have a Communist Party. In the US, Communism is regarded as anti-American, and in the UK the Communist Party (which changed its name to the Democratic Left in 1991) has very little political influence. Although the Communist party used to have a lot of political influence in France and Italy, it no longer does.
com·mu·ni·ty /kəˈmjunɪti/ n 1 [C+sing./pl. v] a group of people living together and/or united by shared interests, religion, nationality etc: the Polish community in Britain | The President met leaders of the black community during his visit to Chicago. | rural communities | the academic community | This terrorist attack has been condemned by the entire international community. (=by all the countries of the world) 2 [the S] the public; people in general: The job of a politician is to serve the (whole) community. | community singing (=singing in which all present may take part) → see SOCIETY (USAGE) 3 [U(of)] shared possession: community of property/companies | The two men were united by community of interests. (=by having the same aims and needs) 4 [C] tech a group of plants or animals living together in the same surroundings, dependent on each other for the means of existence
com'munity 'care n [U] (in Britain) help from the SOCIAL SERVICES for people who would once have had to live in institutions, e.g. mentally ill people, so that they can live in their own homes in the local community. Since the government introduced community care, which is also called care in the community, there has been a lot of concern that not all these people have been able to manage without the special care of the people who worked at the institution.
com'munity ,centre n a building where people from a certain area or group can meet for social, educational, or other purposes
com'munity ,channel also public access channel n (in the US) a television CHANNEL provided by most CABLE television companies which enables people served by the company to broadcast their own programmes or other information
com'munity ,charge, the (in Britain) the official name of a local tax introduced by the Conservative Party. It began to be collected in Scotland in 1989 and in England and Wales in 1990. It was based on each adult person paying the same amount, and replaced the RATES (=a local tax based on property). It was usually known as the POLL TAX.
CULTURAL NOTE The community charge was generally unpopular, for example because a poor family in one house might have to pay a lot more than quite a rich single person living next door. After a lot of trouble, including some RIOTS, the Conservative government announced in 1990 that the community charge would be replaced in 1993 by the COUNCIL TAX.
com'munity ,chest n 1 especially AmE an amount of money collected by the people and businesses of an area to help people in need 2 a square on which you can land in the board game Monopoly
com'munity ,college also junior college n [C;U] (in the US) a COLLEGE which is generally attended by students who live at home rather than at the college
CULTURAL NOTE It costs much less to go to a community college than to go to a university. Many students study there for two years before going to a university to do the final two years of a degree course. Other students who go to a community college do not intend to go to university, and study practical subjects that will help them get a job. Working people also attend community colleges to improve their knowledge and skills.
com,munity 'council n 1 a form of local government in Wales 2 a local advisory body in Scotland with no political authority
com'munity ,home n (in Britain) a special school for young people who have broken the law. They live and receive training there. It replaces the old APPROVED SCHOOL and REMAND HOME → see also REFORMATORY
com,munity po'licing n [U] a system for preventing crime and encouraging good relations between the police and the public, by having the same policemen working in a particular area so that the people in that area know and trust them
com'munity ,property n [U] law (in the US) property such as houses or land etc bought by either a husband or wife but considered to be owned by both
com,munity 'service n [U] 1 VOLUNTARY WORK done to help other people within the local COMMUNITY: Her care of the retired people in the home is an outstanding example of community service. 2 a punishment given by a court for certain less important crimes, according to which an offender must do socially useful work, e.g. repairing old people's homes or helping HANDICAPPED children, instead of going to prison: a sentence of 100 hours of community service
com·mu·ta·ble /kəˈmjuːtəbəl/ adj that can be commuted (COMMUTE (2,3))
com·mu·ta·tion /ˌkɒmjuteɪʃən, ˌkɑː-/ n 1 [C;U(from, to)] (a) reduction in a punishment: The court ordered the commutation of his sentence from death to life imprisonment. 2 [U(into, for)] fml the act of exchanging one thing for another 3 [C] tech a payment of one sort made instead of an equal payment of another sort
,commu'tation ,ticket n AmE a ticket sold at a reduced price by a railway or bus company for a fixed number of trips between two places during a fixed period of time → compare SEASON TICKET
com·mu·ta·tive /kəˈmjutətɪv ˈkɑːmjətətɪv/ adj tech not depending on the order in which an operation is carried out: Addition is commutative, but subtraction is not.
com·mu·ta·tor /ˈkɒmjʊteɪtəʳ ˈkɑː-/ n tech an apparatus used in electric motors, machines etc for changing the direction of flow of an electric current
com·mute¹ /kəˈmjuːt/ v 1 [[between, from, to]] to travel regularly a long distance between your home and work, especially by train or car. Many people in Britain now commute to work, especially into London. In the US, people have to commute in most of the large cities. People who commute are usually WHITE-COLLAR workers: She commutes from Cambridge to London/between Cambridge and London every day. | a suburb within easy commuting distance of the city → see also COMMUTER 2 [T(from, to)] to make (a punishment) less severe: His sentence was commuted from death to life imprisonment. 3 [T(into, for)] to exchange (one thing, especially one kind of payment) for another: He commuted his pension into/for a lump sum. → see also COMMUTABLE, COMMUTATION
commute² n infml the trip made in commuting: It's a long commute from New York to Boston.
commuters
com·mut·er /kəˈmjutəʳ/ n a person who commutes to work every day: a crowded commuter train