common measure

[ kom-uhn mezh-er ]

noun

1. common time.
2. Also called common meter;. Prosody. a ballad stanza of four iambic lines and strict rhymes, often used in hymns, rhyming abcb or abab.

common measure

noun

1. another term for common time
2. the usual stanza form of a ballad, consisting of four iambic lines rhyming a b c b or a b a b

Word History and Origins

Origin of common measure¹

First recorded in 1710–20

Example Sentences

Sperm count – the total number of sperm a man produces – and sperm concentration – number of sperm per milliliter of semen – are common measures, but they aren’t the best predictors of fertility.

From No Straight News

That is, all four countries had the same Gini coefficient, a common measure of income inequality.

From Quartz

I have the one with common measure equivalents--how many milligrams in a teaspoon, how many teaspoons in a cup.

From The Daily Beast

Till then, the Hindus hardly seem to have sought for a common measure of time except for astronomical or mythological purposes.

From Project Gutenberg

The Greeks understood by symmetry, the condition of a body of which the members have a common measure among themselves.

From Project Gutenberg

It must apply to real things, and to things which have definite relations and a common measure.

From Project Gutenberg

There is always a common measure applicable in every formula for the estimation of conduct.

From Project Gutenberg

No common measure of obedience and gratitude, and love, seems to be required of them.

From Project Gutenberg