the meaning of "most commonly used"

[optimistic pessimist]

Dear all,

I'd like to aske the meaning of "most commonly".

"The processes of change in early twentieth-century life are most commonly presented in terms of technological inventions such as those in motorized transport, aviation, and radio..."

Does "most commonly" mean "the most commonly"? I've heard that "most" is sometimes used just for emphasis like "very" and I thought this could be the case.

Thank you!

OP

 

[BobK]

The definite article - unsurprisingly - makes it specific.

The cabbage white is the most commonly seen butterfly in the British Isles.

But

As its name suggests, the cabbage white most commonly feeds on brassicas [=cabbage, sprouts, broccoli, etc.].

b

 

[Shawnansan]

Hello Optimist pessimist
My name is Shawn. Actually you are very close but let me explain a little further. Most common or most commonly is an expression that is short for “it happens so often that it is normal” or “most people think this so it is normal for you to think that too”. For example, in Japan people eat sushi so often that it is normal for people to eat sushi. Hence, “One of the most commonly eaten foods in Japan is sushi”. However, I cannot say the “one of the most commonly eaten foods in Japan is pizza”, because most Japanese people don’t eat pizza on a regular basis. Let me give you a few more examples
The most commonly misspelled words in the English language are ....
The most commonly seen animal in Africa is .....
The most common name is Japan is .....
Please let me know if you have any other questions!

 

[optimistic pessimist]

Dear all,

BobK, Shawnansan, thanks for your replies.

I'm still a little confused, so let me ask in another way.

"The processes of change in early twentieth-century life are most commonly presented in terms of technological inventions such as those in motorized transport, aviation, and radio..."

If I ask you to choose the appropriate meaning of "most commonly" used above from between the two, which would you choose?

1. "Most commonly" is only emphasizing the degree to which the processes of change are presented in terms of technological invention; therefore it is more like "extremely commonly".

2. The processes of change are more commonly represented in terms of technological inventions than in terms of anything else .

I don't know if it's a good question, but I think if we're not familiar with this kind of thing, we might mistranslate English into another language.

Thank you!

OP

 

[Aishwarya.89]

Dear all,

BobK, Shawnansan, thanks for your replies.

I'm still a little confused, so let me ask in another way.

"The processes of change in early twentieth-century life are most commonly presented in terms of technological inventions such as those in motorized transport, aviation, and radio..."

If I ask you to choose the appropriate meaning of "most commonly" used above from between the two, which would you choose?

1. "Most commonly" is only emphasizing the degree to which the processes of change are presented in terms of technological invention; therefore it is more like "extremely commonly".

2. The processes of change are more commonly represented in terms of technological inventions than in terms of anything else .

I don't know if it's a good question, but I think if we're not familiar with this kind of thing, we might mistranslate English into another language.

Thank you!

OP

OP,

As per your sentence, option 2 is appropriate. It brings out the meaning of most commonly accurately.

Thanks,
Aishwarys