auctionnoun [ C or U ]
uk/ˈɔːk.ʃən/us/ˈɑːk.ʃən/C1 a usually public sale of goods or property, where people make higher and higher bids (= offers of money) for each thing, until the thing is sold to the person who will pay most:
a furniture auction
They're holding an auction of jewellery on Thursday.
The painting will be sold at auction next week.
The house and its contents are being put up for auction.
More examples
- Two senior officials have been entrusted with organizing the auction.
- Amongst other pop ephemera, the auction will be selling off rock stars' stage clothes.
- A rare Stradivarius violin failed to reach its reserve price when put up for auction on Tuesday.
- In an auction, goods or property are sold to the highest bidder.
- She bought the bed for a song at an auction.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Shops & auctions
- army disposals store
- army surplus store
- army-navy store
- art gallery
- auction house
- discount store
- discount warehouse
- druggist
- drugstore
- duty-free
- milk bar
- newsagent
- newsstand
- off-licence
- offie
- swap meet
- sweet shop
- tabletop sale
- tag sale
- thrift store
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auctionverb [ T ]
uk/ˈɔːk.ʃən/us/ˈɑːk.ʃən/to sell something in a public auction:
The stamps will be auctioned tomorrow.
The family is auctioning (off) its art collection.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Selling
- bake sale
- bundle
- chain of production
- divest
- export
- flip
- package
- price yourself out of the market idiom
- privatize
- purvey
- realizable
- realization
- realize
- serve
- shift
- telesales
- tout
- undercharge
- unsold
- upsell
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