kəˈmyünyən noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English comunioun, from Middle French, Late Latin, & Latin; Middle French communion, from Late Latin communion-, communio union of Christians, Eucharist, from Latin, mutual participation, from communis common + -ion-, -io -ion — more at common
1. : an action or situation involving sharing:
a. : possession in common : joint ownership : the state of possessions thus held
this communion of goods — William Blackstone
b. : a function performed jointly : an interrelation in activity : an interdependent working together or cooperation
communion of motion of a bird's wings
2. usually capitalized
a. : the Eucharist : the Lord's Supper
b. : a celebration of the Eucharist or the Lord's Supper either as a separate service or as a part of a larger service (as the mass in Roman Catholicism or the divine liturgy in Eastern Orthodoxy)
c. : the act of receiving the eucharistic elements
d. : the elements of the Eucharist
take Communion
e. : the psalm or antiphon said or sung at Communion
3.
a. : the fellowship of members of the same church
b. : general fellowship : a state marked by fellowship, sympathetic companionship, communication, and understanding : communication , converse , exchange
the sentiment of communion with others, of the breaking down of barriers — John Dewey
c. : intimate, sympathetic, reverential, or mystic interchange of ideas and feelings especially dealing with matters innermost and spiritual in order to inspire, strengthen, or solace often as if between man and nature or the supernatural
this communion with the spirit of love at work in the universe — E.R.Bentley
no sympathetic communion between him and the solitude — Ellen Glasgow
d. : communication , dealings
having only limited communion with the natives
4. : a group of religious persons bound together by essential agreement in religious consciousness ; especially : the body of Christians having one common faith and discipline
the Presbyterian communion
the Roman Catholic communion
Synonyms: see religion