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⇱ SELL Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com


sell

1 American  
[sel] / sɛl /

verb (used with object)

sold, selling
  1. to transfer (goods) to or render (services) for another in exchange for money; dispose of to a purchaser for a price.

    He sold the car to me for $1000.

    Synonyms:
    vend, exchange
    Antonyms:
    buy
  2. to deal in; keep or offer for sale.

    He sells insurance. This store sells my favorite brand.

  3. to make a sale or offer for sale to.

    He'll sell me the car for $1000.

  4. to persuade or induce (someone) to buy something.

    The salesman sold me on a more expensive model than I wanted.

  5. to persuade or induce someone to buy (something).

    The clerk really sold the shoes to me by flattery.

  6. to make sales of.

    The hot record sold a million copies this month.

  7. to cause to be accepted, especially generally or widely.

    to sell an idea to the public.

  8. to cause or persuade to accept; convince.

    to sell the voters on a candidate.

  9. to accept a price for or make a profit of (something not a proper object for such action).

    to sell one's soul for political power.

  10. to force or exact a price for.

    The defenders of the fort sold their lives dearly.

  11. Informal. to cheat, betray, or hoax.


verb (used without object)

sold, selling
  1. to engage in selling something.

    Investment advisors agree that it’s time to sell.

  2. to be sold; to draw sales: The game sold poorly in Japan.

    His album is selling well.

    The game sold poorly in Japan.

  3. to offer something for sale.

    I like this house—will they sell?

  4. to be employed to persuade or induce others to buy, as a salesperson or a clerk in a store.

    One sister is a cashier and the other sells.

  5. to have a specific price; be offered for sale at the price indicated (followed by at orfor ).

    Eggs used to sell at sixty cents a dozen. This shirt sells for thirty dollars.

  6. to be in demand by buyers.

    On a rainy day, umbrellas really sell.

  7. to win acceptance, approval, or adoption.

    Here's an idea that'll sell.

noun

  1. an act or method of selling.

    Your home could be a profitable sell.

  2. Stock Exchange. a security to be sold.

  3. Informal. a cheat; hoax.

verb phrase

  1. sell out

    1. to dispose of entirely by selling.

      They sold out of Johnny's brownies before the bake sale was half over.

    2. to betray (an associate, one's country, one’s principles, a cause, etc.).

      He would never sell out to the enemy.

  2. sell up to sell out.

    She was forced to sell up her entire stock of crystal.

  3. sell off to sell, especially at reduced prices, in order to get rid of.

    The city is selling off a large number of small lots at public auction.

idioms

  1. sell someone a bill of goods, bill of goods.

  2. sell short. short.

sell 2 American  
[sel] / sɛl /

noun

Scot.
  1. self.


sell British  
/ sɛl /

verb

  1. to dispose of or transfer or be disposed of or transferred to a purchaser in exchange for money or other consideration; put or be on sale

  2. to deal in (objects, property, etc)

    he sells used cars for a living

  3. (tr) to give up or surrender for a price or reward

    to sell one's honour

  4. to promote or facilitate the sale of (objects, property, etc)

    publicity sells many products

  5. to induce or gain acceptance of

    to sell an idea

  6. (intr) to be in demand on the market

    these dresses sell well in the spring

  7. informal (tr) to deceive or cheat

  8. to persuade to accept or approve (of)

    to sell a buyer on a purchase

  9. informal to betray

    1. to convince someone else of one's potential or worth

    2. to give up one's moral or spiritual standards, etc

    1. informal to disparage or belittle

    2. finance to sell securities or goods without owning them in anticipation of buying them before delivery at a lower price

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. the act or an instance of selling Compare hard sell soft sell

  2. informal

    1. a trick, hoax, or deception

    2. a great disappointment

      the service in the hotel was a sell

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
sell More Idioms  

    More idioms and phrases containing sell


Related Words

See trade.

Other Word Forms

  • sellable adjective

Etymology

Origin of sell

First recorded before 900; Middle English sellen, Old English sellan, originally, “to give,” hence, “to give up (someone) to an enemy, betray, exchange for money”; cognate with Old Norse selja, Low German sellen, Gothic saljan “to give up, sell,” originally, “to cause to take”; akin to Greek heleîn “to take, grasp”

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.

If you’d buy USO at $105, say, sell the $105 put that expires in two weeks or less.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

Research teams also connect two sides of an investment bank’s business: the companies that serve as clients and the traders who buy and sell those firms’ stocks and bonds.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

Data from Uefa's annual European club finance and investment landscape report shows that - including both general admission and hospitality - Liverpool make an average of £74 per fan from every ticket they sell.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

“It doesn’t usually happen because moviemaking is a business and you have to have names and sell it,” Ortiz says.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

“We couldn’t believe people would sell us these long-term options so cheaply,” said Jamie.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

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.