Condominium
/ˌkɒndəˈmɪniəm/
Definitions
2 meaningsA building or complex of buildings containing a number of individually owned apartments or houses.
/ˌkɒndəˈmɪniəm/
An individually owned apartment in a building with multiple units.
They decided to move into a condominium to be closer to the city.
💡 Simply: Imagine a big building with lots of apartments, but each apartment is owned by a different person, not a landlord. That's a condominium! It's like having your own home, but it’s part of a bigger building with other people. You usually share things like hallways and sometimes pools or gyms.
👶 For kids: A condominium is like a building where lots of families have their own apartments. They each own their own apartment, but they share the building.
More Examples
The condominium association handles the maintenance of the common areas.
The price of the condominium included a parking space and a storage unit.
How It's Used
"The couple purchased a condominium in the city center."
Joint sovereignty over a territory by two or more states.
/ˌkɒndəˈmɪniəm/
Joint control or sovereignty over a territory.
The treaty established a condominium over the island.
💡 Simply: Imagine two countries agreeing to share the rules and control of a piece of land. That's a condominium – but in this case, it’s about government and not apartments!
👶 For kids: Sometimes, two countries might agree to share control over one place. That's like a condominium, but for countries.
More Examples
The legal scholars debated the implications of the condominium arrangement.
Historically, condominiums have been used to resolve territorial disputes.
How It's Used
"The two nations agreed to a condominium over the disputed territory."
From Latin *condominium*, from *con-* (with, together) + *dominium* (ownership, dominion). Originally used in international law to describe shared sovereignty over a territory. Its usage in real estate developed later.
Originally applied to shared governance of a territory, as seen in historical examples like the Anglo-Egyptian Condominium over Sudan.
Memory tip
Think of a shared dominion, but for apartments.
Word Origin
"joint ownership/dominion"