commute
/kəˈmjuːt/ (bre, ipa) · /kəˈmjuːt/ (ame, ipa) · /kə-ˈmyüt/ (ame, mw)
commute — verb
- commutepresent simple I / you / we / they
- commuteshe / she / it
- commutedpast simple
- commuting-ing form
1. to go regularly from your home to your workplace or school, and back again, ofte
to go regularly from your home to your workplace or school, and back again, often over a long distance
Priya commutes from Hsinchu to her office in Taipei every workday morning.
commute + from [place] + to [place]
Theo commutes by train and uses the journey time to catch up on his reading.
commute + by [means of transport]
Since moving to the suburbs, Yusuf now commutes over eighty kilometres each way.
Leila commutes to the university where she teaches three mornings a week.
The number of people who commute into central Taipei has grown steadily each year.
- travel
general term for any trip; 'commute' specifically means the regular home-to-work journey
- go back and forth
informal; describes any repeated movement between two places
- shuttle
implies moving between two fixed points, often in a vehicle designed for that purpose
文法句型
commute + from [place] + to [place]
commute + by [means of transport]
commute + [distance]
用法筆記
Only sense that is intransitive. Subject is always a person. Frequently paired with 'from [departure point] + to [destination]', 'by [mode of transport]', or a distance phrase.
常見錯誤
2. to formally turn one kind of right, benefit, payment, or obligation into a diffe
to formally turn one kind of right, benefit, payment, or obligation into a different kind
The company allows workers to commute their unused holiday leave into extra pay.
commute + [benefit] + into [alternative]
Retirees may commute a portion of their monthly pension into a single cash payment.
commute + [portion] + of [asset] + into [form]
The council voted to commute the historic building's protected status into a development permit.
Under the new contract, overtime hours can be commuted into additional days off.
文法句型
commute + [object] + into [new form]
用法筆記
Formal register; most common in legal, financial, and contractual contexts. Object is typically a right, benefit, payment, or obligation — not a physical object. Contrast with sense 3 (narrower — payment format only) and sense 4 (punishment reduction only).
常見錯誤
3. to swap a debt or payment from one type of arrangement to another, such as turni
to swap a debt or payment from one type of arrangement to another, such as turning a series of instalments into a single amount, or the reverse
The insurance company commuted his annual premium into twelve smaller monthly payments.
commute + [payment] + into [instalments]
Lottery winners often choose to commute their prize into a single cash payment instead of yearly sums.
Homeowners can commute their yearly property tax into four quarterly payments.
Under the agreement, she commuted her legal fees into a series of monthly deductions from her salary.
- convert
more general; 'commute' is specific to payment restructuring in financial contexts
- restructure
focuses on changing the payment schedule; 'commute' can also change the payment type itself
文法句型
commute + [payment] + into [different payment format]
用法筆記
Narrower than sense 2 — this sense is specifically about changing how a payment or debt is structured (e.g. annual to monthly, lump sum to instalments). Subject is typically a person or organisation making the payment. Object must be a sum of money or debt.
常見錯誤
4. to officially reduce a criminal punishment, especially by replacing a death sent
to officially reduce a criminal punishment, especially by replacing a death sentence with a prison term or a long sentence with a shorter one
The governor commuted the prisoner's death sentence to life in prison without parole.
commute + [death sentence] + to [lesser sentence]
After a review, the committee commuted his ten-year sentence to five years on probation.
commute + [years] + to [shorter term]
The president commuted the sentences of three non-violent offenders last Friday.
A judge may commute a prison term if new evidence suggests the punishment was too harsh.
The court commuted her life sentence after new DNA evidence proved her partial innocence.
- increase
opposite action — making a sentence more severe
文法句型
commute + [sentence] + to [lesser sentence]
用法筆記
Formal legal register. Subject is always an authority figure (governor, president, judge, review board). Object must be a punishment or sentence. Only sense that involves leniency or clemency. Distinguish from 'pardon' — a pardon forgives the crime entirely, while commutation only reduces the penalty.
常見錯誤
commute — noun
- commutesingular
- commutesplural
1. the regular trip that a person makes between their home and their workplace, usu
the regular trip that a person makes between their home and their workplace, usually over a fixed distance and at set times
Ravi's daily commute takes ninety minutes each way by train and bus.
[possessive] + commute + takes [time]
The new express bus line has shortened Wen's commute from two hours to forty minutes.
shortened [possessive] + commute
During her morning commute, Beatriz listens to language-learning podcasts.
A long commute can leave workers feeling tired before the workday even begins.
The company offers flexible hours so staff can avoid the worst of the rush-hour commute.
文法句型
[possessive] + commute
long/short + commute
用法筆記
Typically modified by adjectives describing time or difficulty ('long', 'short', 'easy', 'stressful'). Often used with time expressions ('takes X minutes', 'two-hour'). The noun is the most common form in everyday conversation — more natural than the verb in many contexts.