Adjacent Words

Mutual definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

MU'TUAL, a. [L. mutuus, from muto, to change.]
Reciprocal; interchanged , each acting in return or correspondence to the other; given and received. Mutual love is that which is entertained by two persons each for the other; mutual advantage is that which is conferred by one person or another,and received by him in return. So we say, mutual assistance, mutual aversion.
And, what should most excite a mutual flame,
Your rural cares and pleasures are the same.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: common to or shared by two or more parties; "a common friend"; "the mutual interests of management and labor" [syn: common, mutual]
2: concerning each of two or more persons or things; especially given or done in return; "reciprocal aid"; "reciprocal trade"; "mutual respect"; "reciprocal privileges at other clubs" [syn: reciprocal, mutual] [ant: nonreciprocal]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Middle French mutuel, from Latin mutuus lent, borrowed, mutual, from mutare to change — more at mutable Date: 15th century 1. a. directed by each toward the other or the others <mutual affection> b. having the same feelings one for the other <they had long been mutual enemies> c. shared in common <enjoying their mutual hobby> d. joint 2. characterized by intimacy 3. of or relating to a plan whereby the members of an organization share in the profits and expenses; specifically of, relating to, or taking the form of an insurance method in which the policyholders constitute the members of the insuring company • mutually adverb

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. 1 (of feelings, actions, etc.) experienced or done by each of two or more parties with reference to the other or others (mutual affection). 2 colloq. disp. common to two or more persons (a mutual friend; a mutual interest). 3 standing in (a specified) relation to each other (mutual well-wishers; mutual beneficiaries). Phrases and idioms: mutual fund US a unit trust. mutual inductance the property of an electric circuit that causes an electromotive force to be generated in it by change in the current flowing through a magnetically linked circuit. mutual induction the production of an electromotive force between adjacent circuits that are magnetically linked. mutual insurance insurance in which some or all of the profits are divided among the policyholders. Derivatives: mutuality n. mutually adv. Etymology: ME f. OF mutuel f. L mutuus mutual, borrowed, rel. to mutare change

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Mutual Mu"tu*al, a. [F. mutuel, L. mutuus, orig., exchanged, borrowed, lent; akin to mutare to change. See Mutable.] 1. Reciprocally acting or related; reciprocally receiving and giving; reciprocally given and received; reciprocal; interchanged; as, a mutual love, advantage, assistance, aversion, etc. Conspiracy and mutual promise. --Sir T. More. Happy in our mutual help, And mutual love. --Milton. A certain shyness on such subjects, which was mutual between the sisters. --G. Eliot. 2. Possessed, experienced, or done by two or more persons or things at the same time; common; joint; as, mutual happiness; a mutual effort. --Burke. A vast accession of misery and woe from the mutual weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth. --Bentley. Note: This use of mutual as synonymous with common is inconsistent with the idea of interchange, or reciprocal relation, which properly belongs to it; but the word has been so used by many writers of high authority. The present tendency is toward a careful discrimination. Mutual, as Johnson will tell us, means something reciprocal, a giving and taking. How could people have mutual ancestors? --P. Harrison. Mutual insurance, agreement among a number of persons to insure each other against loss, as by fire, death, or accident. Mutual insurance company, one which does a business of insurance on the mutual principle, the policy holders sharing losses and profits pro rata. Syn: Reciprocal; interchanged; common.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. You use mutual to describe a situation, feeling, or action that is experienced, felt, or done by both of two people mentioned. The East and the West can work together for their mutual benefit and progress... It's plain that he adores his daughter, and the feeling is mutual. ADJ • mutually Attempts to reach a mutually agreed solution had been fruitless... see exclusive ADV: ADV adj/adv, ADV before v 2. You use mutual to describe something such as an interest which two or more people share. They do, however, share a mutual interest in design... We were introduced by a mutual friend. ADJ: usu ADJ n 3. If a building society or an insurance company has mutual status, it is not owned by shareholders but by its customers, who receive a share of the profits. (BRIT BUSINESS) Britain's third largest building society abandoned its mutual status and became a bank. ADJ: ADJ n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. Reciprocal, interchanged, correlative, reciprocally given and received, common, interchangeable.

Moby Thesaurus

accessory, accompanying, associated, attendant, attending, changeable, coacting, coactive, coadjutant, coadjuvant, coefficient, coincident, collaborative, collateral, collective, collectivist, collectivistic, collusive, combined, commensal, common, communal, communalist, communalistic, communist, communistic, communitarian, commutable, commutative, commutual, complementary, concerted, concomitant, concordant, concurrent, concurring, conjoint, conjunct, connected, conniving, convertible, cooperant, cooperating, cooperative, correlative, coupled, ecumenic, equal, equalizing, equivalent, even, exchanged, fellow, general, give-and-take, harmonious, harmonized, in common, interactive, interchangeable, interchanged, joined, joint, noncompetitive, paired, parallel, permutable, popular, public, reciprocal, reciprocating, reciprocative, related, respective, retaliatory, returnable, shared, simultaneous, social, socialistic, societal, standard, swapped, switched, symbiotic, synergetic, synergic, synergistic, traded, transposed, twin, two-way, uncompetitive, united