public

Fetched 2026-11-05 (live).

Synonyms: pubic, pulic

Antonyms: pubic, pulic

Related words from Datamuse; suggestions, not definitions.

Adjective

1. Able to be known or seen by everyone; happening without concealment; open to general view. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
2. Open to all members of a community, as opposed to only a segment of it; especially, provided by national or local authorities and supported by money from taxes.
   • public library public park
3. Of a company: having shares of stock traded publicly, for example, through a stock market.
4. Pertaining to the people as a whole, as opposed to a group of people; concerning the whole community or country.
5. Officially representing the community; carried out or funded by the government or state on behalf of the community, rather than by a private organization.
   • public housing public officer public prosecutor public servant
6. Pertaining to a person in the capacity in which they deal with other people on a formal or official basis, as opposed to a personal or private capacity; official, professional.
   • public face public image
7. Of an object: accessible to the program in general, not only to a class or subclass.
8. Pertaining to nations collectively, or to nations regarded as civilized; international, supernational. Now chiefly in public spirit and public-spirited: seeking to further the best interests or well-being of the community or nation. Now only in public figure: famous, prominent, well-known.
9. Pertaining to nations collectively, or to nations regarded as civilized; international, supernational.
10. Now chiefly in public spirit and public-spirited: seeking to further the best interests or well-being of the community or nation.
11. Now only in public figure: famous, prominent, well-known.
12. In some older universities in the United Kingdom: open or pertaining to the whole university, as opposed to a constituent college or an individual staff member or student.
13. Of or pertaining to the human race as a whole; common, universal. Chiefly in make public: of a work: printed or otherwise published.
14. Of or pertaining to the human race as a whole; common, universal.
15. Chiefly in make public: of a work: printed or otherwise published.

Noun

1. Chiefly preceded by the: members of the community or the people in general, regardless of membership of any particular group.
   • Members of the public may not proceed beyond this point.
2. Preceded by a possessive determiner such as my, your, or their: a group of people who support a particular person, especially a performer, a writer, etc.; an audience, a following.
   • the cinema-going public
   • the reading public
   • :
3. Preceded by a possessive determiner such as my, your, or their: a group of people who support a particular person, especially a performer, a writer, etc.; an audience, a following.
4. Ellipsis of public house or public bar (“an inn, a pub: the more basic bar in a public house, as contrasted with the lounge bar or saloon bar which has more comfortable seats, personalized service, etc.”).
5. Often preceded by the and a qualifying word: a particular demographic or group of people, or segment of the population, sharing some common characteristic.
   • the cinema-going public
   • the reading public
6. A group of people sharing some common cultural, political, or social interest, but not necessarily having any interactions with each other.
7. Chiefly preceded by the: a collective body of a politically organized nation or state; a body politic, a nation, a state; also, the interest or well-being of such a collective body; the common good.
   • :
8. Chiefly preceded by the: a collective body of a politically organized nation or state; a body politic, a nation, a state; also, the interest or well-being of such a collective body; the common good.
   • :
9. At Harvard University: a penalty imposed on a student involving a grade reduction which is communicated to the student's parents or guardian.
10. Chiefly in in public: the presence of spectators or people generally; the open.

Verb

1. To make (something) openly or widely known; to publicize, to publish.

Noun

1. An internet publication.

Source: Wiktionary · CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wiktionary) · cached copy, not a rewrite.