common vs public

common

noun
  • The people; the community. 

  • The right of taking a profit in the land of another, in common either with the owner or with other persons; so called from the community of interest which arises between the claimant of the right and the owner of the soil, or between the claimants and other commoners entitled to the same right. 

  • A tract of land in common ownership; common land. 

  • Mutual good, shared by more than one. 

adj
  • Mutual; shared by more than one. 

  • Found in large numbers or in a large quantity; usual. 

  • Of or pertaining to common nouns as opposed to proper nouns. 

  • Simple, ordinary or vulgar. 

  • Of, pertaining or belonging to the common gender. 

  • Vernacular, referring to the name of a kind of plant or animal, i.e., common name vs. scientific name. 

  • Occurring or happening regularly or frequently; usual. 

public

noun
  • A particular group or demographic to be targeted. 

  • The people in general, regardless of membership of any particular group. 

adj
  • Able to be seen or known by everyone; open to general view, happening without concealment. 

  • Officially representing the community; carried out or funded by the state on behalf of the community. 

  • Traded publicly via a stock market. 

  • Open to all members of a community; especially, provided by national or local authorities and supported by money from taxes. 

  • Pertaining to the people as a whole (as opposed to a private group); concerning the whole country, community etc. 

  • Accessible to the program in general, not only to the class or any subclasses. 

How often have the words common and public occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )