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sale

Pronunciation: /seɪl/

Translate sale | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of sale

noun

  • 1 [mass noun] the exchange of a commodity for money; the action of selling something:we withdrew it from sale [count noun]:the sale has fallen through
  • (sales) a quantity or amount sold:price cuts failed to boost sales
  • (sales) the activity or business of selling products:director of sales and marketing
  • 2a period during which a shop sells goods at reduced prices:the January sales got under way this week
  • a public or charitable event at which goods are sold or auctioned:a bric-a-brac sale will be held at St Cuthbert’s Church Centre

Phrases

(up) for sale

offered for purchase; to be bought:cars for sale at reasonable prices

on sale

  • 1offered for purchase:the November issue is on sale now
  • 2North American offered for purchase at a reduced price: the crash put stocks on sale by slashing prices

sale or return

British an arrangement by which a purchaser takes a quantity of goods with the right of returning surplus goods without payment: [as modifier]:booksellers normally order books on a sale-or-return basis

Origin:

late Old English sala, from Old Norse sala, of Germanic origin; related to sell

sale in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of sale in the US English dictionary

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