auction
Americannoun
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Also called public sale. a publicly held sale at which property or goods are sold to the highest bidder.
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Cards.
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(in bridge or certain other games) the competitive bidding to fix a contract that a player or players undertake to fulfill.
verb (used with object)
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to sell by auction (often followed byoff ).
He auctioned off his furniture.
noun
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a public sale of goods or property, esp one in which prospective purchasers bid against each other until the highest price is reached Compare Dutch auction
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the competitive calls made in bridge and other games before play begins, undertaking to win a given number of tricks if a certain suit is trumps
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See auction bridge
verb
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to sell by auction
Other Word Forms
- auctionable adjective
- auctionary adjective
- proauction adjective
- unauctioned adjective
Etymology
Origin of auction
1585–95; < Latin auctiōn- (stem of auctiō ) an increase, especially in the bidding at a sale, equivalent to auct ( us ) increased, past participle of augēre ( aug- increase + -tus past participle suffix) + -iōn- -ion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A $58 billion auction of three-year Treasury notes is ahead.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026
Amazon had planned to rely more on its own delivery infrastructure for packages, Reuters said, adding that the company had taken issue with the USPS’s plans to put its last-mile delivery coverage up for auction.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 6, 2026
Allowances are sold at auction and can also be traded among polluters.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026
Bonds are reflecting investors’ concerns, most recently with the tepid investor response last week to a $69 billion auction of 2-year Treasuries.
From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026
I join a second auction happening for a power-up that looks like a round, growling, fuzzy black creature with two large paws.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.