commutation

Definitions

1. 1.The act of giving one thing for another; barter; exchange. [Obs.] The use of money is . . . that of saving the commutation of more bulky commodities. Arbuthnot.
2. 2.(Law) The change of a penalty or punishment by the pardoning power of the State; as, the commutation of a sentence of death to banishment or imprisonment. Suits are allowable in the spiritual courts for money agreed to be given as a commutation for penance. Blackstone.
3. 3.A substitution, as of a less thing for a greater, esp. a substitution of one form of payment for another, or one payment for many, or a specific sum of money for conditional payments or allowances; as, commutation of tithes; commutation of fares; commutation of copyright; commutation of rations. Angle of commutation (Astron.), the difference of the geocentric longitudes of the sun and a planet. -- Commutation of tithes, the substitution of a regular payment, chargeable to the land, for the annual tithes in kind. -- Commutation ticket, a ticket, as for transportation, which is the evidence of a contract for service at a reduced rate. See 2d Commute, 2.

Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).

Synonyms

Related questions

• What does "commutation" mean?
• What is another word for "commutation"?

Reverse-dictionary questions

Definition-first questions whose answer is commutation.

• What is the act of giving one thing for another; barter; exchange. [Obs.] The use of money is . . . that of saving the commutation of more bulky commodities. Arbuthnot called?