commode
/kəˈməʊd/ (bre, ipa) · [kəmˈod] /kəˈməʊd/ (ame, ipa) · [kəmˈod] /kə-ˈmōd How to pronounce commode (audio)/ (ame, mw)
commode — noun
- commodesingular
- commodesplural
1. a chair-shaped piece of furniture holding a removable pan beneath the seat, used
a chair-shaped piece of furniture holding a removable pan beneath the seat, used as a portable toilet by sick or elderly people who cannot easily reach a bathroom.
The nurse wheeled a wooden commode next to Otis's hospital bed after his hip operation.
typical hospital/eldercare context
Amihan kept a small commode by her grandmother's bed for night trips.
home eldercare scene
Care staff emptied each commode pan twice daily and scrubbed it with disinfectant.
After the stroke, Beatriz rented a folding commode for her upstairs bedroom.
- bedside toilet
plainer, more clinical term used in eldercare catalogues
- chamber pot chair
older descriptive label; less common in modern speech
用法筆記
Subject is usually a patient, an elderly person, or a caregiver; the device sits beside the bed rather than in a bathroom.
常見錯誤
2. a flush toilet built into a bathroom — a formal or polite word that some America
a flush toilet built into a bathroom — a formal or polite word that some American speakers use instead of saying 'toilet' directly.
The realtor pointed out the new tiling and the porcelain commode in the upstairs bathroom.
real-estate listing register
Sana's grandmother always called the bathroom fixture a commode, never a toilet.
polite / older-generation register
The plumber said the commode in the guest bathroom would need a new flush valve.
A leak at the commode base left a damp ring on the tiles.
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this commode is a fixed bathroom fixture you flush, not a portable bedside chair. Often a politeness term — a host saying 'the commode is down the hall' avoids the bluntness of 'toilet'.
常見錯誤
3. a low, often decorated chest of drawers — typically an antique piece used to sto
a low, often decorated chest of drawers — typically an antique piece used to store clothes or household items in a bedroom or hallway.
Christopher inherited an eighteenth-century walnut commode from his great-aunt in Vienna.
antique-furniture context
Two gilded commodes stood beside the grand fireplace in the hotel lobby.
decorative interior scene
Walid keeps folded shirts in the painted commode near his bed.
The auction catalogue highlighted a French commode with marble top and brass handles.
- chest of drawers
the everyday neutral term; commode implies older or more decorative
- bureau
American English alternative for a bedroom chest of drawers
用法筆記
Most common in antique-dealing, interior-design, and museum contexts. A commode in this sense is usually lower and more decorative than a tallboy or a regular chest of drawers.