sell
1 of 4verb
ˈsel 
sold ˈsōld ; selling
; selling transitive verb
1
: to deliver or give up in violation of duty, trust, or loyalty and especially for personal gain : betray —often used with out
sell out their country
2
a(1)
: to give up (property) to another for something of value (such as money)
(2)
: to offer for sale
b
: to give up in return for something else especially foolishly or dishonorably
sold his birthright for a mess of pottage
c
: to exact a price for
sold their lives dearly
3
a
: to deliver into slavery for money
b
: to give into the power of another
sold his soul to the devil
c
: to deliver the personal services of for money
4
: to dispose of or manage for profit instead of in accordance with conscience, justice, or duty
sold their votes
5
a
: to develop a belief in the truth, value, or desirability of : gain acceptance for
trying to sell a program to the Congress
b
: to persuade or influence to a course of action or to the acceptance of something
sell children on reading
6
: to impose on : cheat
7
a
: to cause or promote the sale of
using television advertising to sell cereal
b
: to make or attempt to make sales to
c
: to influence or induce to make a purchase
8
: to achieve a sale of
sold a million copies
intransitive verb
1
: to dispose of something by sale
thinks now is a good time to sell
2
: to achieve a sale
also : to achieve satisfactory sales
hoped that the new line would sell
3
: to have a specified price
sellable
ˈse-lə-bəl
adjective sell
2 of 4noun (1)
1
: a deliberate deception : hoax
2
: the act or an instance of selling
3
: something to be sold or caused to be accepted
the new mystery novel was an easy sell
also : someone to whom something is sold
the new purchasing agent was a tough sell
sell
3 of 4noun (2)
ˈsel
variants or selle
archaic
: saddle
sell
4 of 4chiefly Scottish variant of self
Synonyms
Verb
- deal (in)
- market
- merchandise
- merchandize
- put up
- retail
- vend
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Verb He buys and remodels houses and then sells them at a profit. Stock prices are increasing, so now is a good time to sell. Only a few stores sell that type of equipment.
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English, from Old English sellan; akin to Old High German sellen to sell, Greek helein to take
Noun (2)
Middle English selle, from Anglo-French sele, from Latin sella — more at settle
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Noun (1)
1838, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Noun (2)
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing sell
Kids Definition
sell
verb
ˈsel
sold
ˈsōld
; selling 1
: to exchange in return for money or something else of value
He sold his bike to my brother.
2
: to make available for sale
The store sells shoes.
3
: to be sold or priced
The new product is selling well.
These sell for a dollar apiece.
Legal Definition
sell
verb
sold; selling
transitive verb
1
: to transfer ownership of by sale compare barter, convey, give
2
: to offer for sale
intransitive verb
: to dispose of something by sale : make a sale compare donate
sell down the river
phrase
as in betray
to be unfaithful or disloyal to He didn't expect to be sold down the river by someone he had known for so long. Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- betray
- sell (out)
- stab in the back
- backstab
- cross
- give away
- turn in
- double-cross
- go back on
- peach
- two-time
- snitch (on)
- shop
- split (on)
- inform (on)
- rat (on)
- tell (on)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- stand by
- defend
- protect
- guard
- shield
- safeguard
- save