commencement exercise vs graduation exercise

commencement exercise and graduation exercise both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
commencement exercise	Yes	No	No	No
graduation exercise	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, commencement exercise and graduation exercise are synonyms defined as:

commencement exercise and graduation exercise: an academic exercise in which diplomas are conferred

Other synonyms of commencement exercise include commencement, commencement ceremony, graduation.

commencement exercise (noun)	graduation exercise (noun)
an academic exercise in which diplomas are conferred	an academic exercise in which diplomas are conferred