ˌkämyəˈtāshən noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin commutation-, commutatio, from commutatus past participle of commutare to change) + -ion-, -io -ion — more at commute
1. : exchange , trade , barter
the transatlantic commutation of experts — Fortune
2. archaic : change , alteration
3. : substitution , interchange , replacement
4. : substitution in a charge, assessment, payment, or remuneration of one form, method, schedule, or amount for another : an arrangement effecting such substitution : money or other value involved
commutation by money payment in place of the exacted service
a commutation whereby the remaining payments were lumped together
officers living off the post receiving rental allowance commutation
5.
a. : change of a legal penalty or punishment to a lesser one
commutation of the death sentence to a long prison term
b. : substitution of one work for another in fulfilling a religious vow
6. : act of commuting : travel back and forth between two points, especially between home and work, repeated a certain number of times within a given interval
7.
a. : reversal or transference of the connections between an armature coil and the external circuit in a direct-current dynamo or motor
b. : the partial overlapping of successive cycles of current from successive anodes in a polyphase rectifier