Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Of, relating to, or typical of this world; secular.
  • adjective Relating to, characteristic of, or concerned with commonplaces; ordinary.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Belonging to this world; worldly; terrestrial; earthly: as, this mundane sphere; mundane existence.
  • In astrology, relating to the horizon, and not to the ecliptic.
  • noun A dweller in this world.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Of or pertaining to the world; worldly, as contrasted with heavenly; earthly; terrestrial.
  • adjective Commonplace; ordinary; banal.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective worldly, earthly, profane, vulgar as opposed to heavenly
  • adjective Pertaining to the Universe, cosmos or physical reality, as opposed to the spiritual world.
  • adjective ordinary; not new
  • adjective tedious; repetitive and boring
  • noun slang, derogatory, in various subcultures A person considered to be "normal", not part of the elite group.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective concerned with the world or worldly matters
  • adjective belonging to this earth or world; not ideal or heavenly
  • adjective found in the ordinary course of events

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English mondeine, from Old French mondain, from Latin mundānus, from mundus, world.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin mundanus, from mundus ("world").

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word mundane.

Examples

  • "I'd revert back to thinking about guys getting blown up, getting shot at," he says, instead of focusing on what he called his "mundane and menial" schoolwork.

    Vets go from combat to campus 2011

  • "I'd revert back to thinking about guys getting blown up, getting shot at," he says, instead of focusing on what he called his "mundane and menial" schoolwork.

    Vets go from combat to campus 2011

  • What if the mundane is the socio-cultural equivalent of the primordial soup?

    Archive 2004-09-01 2004

  • What if the mundane is the socio-cultural equivalent of the primordial soup?

    One lady's trash. 2004

  • All because s/he knows where they're going, recognizes that "mundane" is the fate of a business filled with "normal," and has the cojones to flaunt the HR/MBA guidelines because of her/his burning desire to achieve greatness.

    house rules 2009

  • All because s/he knows where they're going, recognizes that "mundane" is the fate of a business filled with "normal," and has the cojones to flaunt the HR/MBA guidelines because of her/his burning desire to achieve greatness.

    7 posts from August 2009 2009

  • All because s/he knows where they're going, recognizes that "mundane" is the fate of a business filled with "normal," and has the cojones to flaunt the HR/MBA guidelines because of her/his burning desire to achieve greatness.

    Management 2010

  • All because s/he knows where they're going, recognizes that "mundane" is the fate of a business filled with "normal," and has the cojones to flaunt the HR/MBA guidelines because of her/his burning desire to achieve greatness.

    house rules 2009

  • (disequilibrium), or spontaneous order, but what I call mundane economics -- price theory, capital theory, monetary theory, business-cycle theory, and the theory of interventionism.

    Libertarian Blog Place 2008

  • After a big block of text, here is my real topic: what kind of powers could be used effectively in mundane situations?

    Superhero Nation: how to write superhero novels and comic books » Faraway Soul’s Review Forum 2009

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • church people use it a lot

    October 1, 2010