bargain

American  

[bahr-guhn] / ˈbɑr gən /

noun

• bargains
  plural

1. an advantageous purchase, especially one acquired at less than the usual cost.

   The sale offered bargains galore.

2. an agreement between parties settling what each shall give and take or perform and receive in a transaction.

   Synonyms:

   transaction, arrangement, stipulation

3. such an agreement as affecting one of the parties.

   a losing bargain.

4. something acquired by bargaining.

5. Informal. an agreeable person, especially one who causes no trouble or difficulty (usually used in negative constructions).

   His boss is no bargain.

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verb (used without object)

• bargains,
  present (3rd person singular)
• bargained,
  past participle,  past
• bargaining
  present participle

1. to discuss the terms of a bargain; haggle; negotiate.

2. to come to an agreement; make a bargain.

   We bargained on a three-year term.

   Synonyms:

   covenant, contract

verb (used with object)

• bargains,
  present (3rd person singular)
• bargained,
  past participle,  past
• bargaining
  present participle

1. to arrange by bargain; negotiate.

   to bargain a new wage increase.

2. to anticipate as likely to occur; expect (usually followed by a clause).

   I'll bargain that he's going to give those company directors plenty of trouble.

verb phrase

1. bargain on to expect or anticipate; count or rely on.

   You can't bargain on what she'll do in this situation.

2. bargain for to anticipate or take into account.

   The job turned out to be more than he had bargained for.

idioms

1. strike a bargain, to make a bargain; agree to terms.

   They were unable to strike a bargain because the owner's asking price was more than the prospective buyer could afford.

2. in / into the bargain, over and above what has been stipulated; moreover; besides.

   The new housekeeper proved to be a fine cook in the bargain.

bargain British  

/ ˈbɑːɡɪn /

noun

1. an agreement or contract establishing what each party will give, receive, or perform in a transaction between them

2. something acquired or received in such an agreement

3. 1. something bought or offered at a low price

      a bargain at an auction

   2. ( as modifier )

      a bargain price

4. in excess of what has been stipulated; besides

5. to agree on terms

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verb

1. (intr) to negotiate the terms of an agreement, transaction, etc

2. (tr) to exchange, as in a bargain

3. to arrive at (an agreement or settlement)

bargain More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing bargain

• drive a bargain
• into the bargain
• make the best of it (a bad bargain)
• more than one bargained for
• strike a bargain

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Synonym Usage

See agreement. See trade.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• bargainer
  noun
• bargaining
  noun
• outbargain
  verb (used with object)
• prebargain
  verb (used with object)
• bargainable
  adjective
• probargaining
  adjective
• unbargained
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• bargains
  plural

Participles

• bargaining
  present
• bargained
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• bargain
  simple
• bargains
  simple
• have bargained
  perfect
• has bargained
  perfect
• am bargaining
  progressive
• are bargaining
  progressive
• is bargaining
  progressive
• have been bargaining
  perfect progressive
• has been bargaining
  perfect progressive

Past

• bargained
  simple
• had bargained
  perfect
• was bargaining
  progressive
• were bargaining
  progressive
• had been bargaining
  perfect progressive

Future

• will bargain
  simple
• will have bargained
  perfect
• will be bargaining
  progressive
• will have been bargaining
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of bargain

First recorded in 1300–50; (for the verb) Middle English bargaynen, from Anglo-French, Old French bargai(g)ner, probably from Frankish borganjan (unrecorded); cognate with Old High German bor(a)gēn “to look after” ( German borgen “to lend”); (for the noun) Middle English bargayn, from Anglo-French, Old French bargai(g)ne, bargain, derivative of the verb; cf. borrow

Explanation

The table you bought at a yard sale for five dollars might seem like a bargain until you get it home and realize it only has three legs. A bargain is a good deal. Inexpensive items are one type of bargain, and another kind of bargain is an agreement you make with someone — a deal or compromise. Two countries might strike a trade bargain, or you could make a bargain with your friend that you'll drive to the mall if she buys you a giant cinnamon roll. Bargain also means to negotiate the details of a purchase, which makes sense because the root word is bargaignier, French for "haggle over the price."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bargain bargains bargained bargaining

Deal or no deal, AstraZeneca stock looks like a bargain.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

That has fuelled speculation that the AI play was back as traders return to pick up bargain stocks.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

New minor league baseball team in Irvine plans to offer affordable fun and isn’t worried about competing with the nearby bargain friendly Angels.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

Based on these figures and the forward price-to-earnings ratios, investors might be staring at a bargain with Oracle.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026

I didn’t have anything left to bargain with.

From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron

After four weeks of blood-letting fuelled by worries over the vast sums being invested in artificial intelligence, traders raced to pick up bargains following a series of strong earnings.

From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026

Microcap stocks as a group have been outperforming large-cap stocks by a wide margin so far this year, but there are still plenty of bargains to be had.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026

That is forcing many companies to drive hard bargains and sacrifice profit margins to hold prices below the psychologically important $10 threshold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

"Today's bidding wars are going to be seen as bargains, and they already are," says Rachel Swann, the listing agent for the Duboce Triangle property.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

“Now that bargains have been kept and promises fulfilled, I think it best that we move on. Yes, little demon, we have business to discuss.”

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff

Slate’s Alexander Sammon paid the lab a visit and learned more than he bargained for.

From Slate ● Jul. 13, 2026

Healing requires empathy, but it also requires clarity about what cannot be bargained away.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Instead, parental leave should be bargained through teacher union negotiations, said Dorothy Johnson, legislative advocate for the Assn. of California School Administrators.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2025

That is a situation United had not bargained for six months ago.

From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2025

Roza liked one of the dressers and Sean bargained for it.

From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby

In Connecticut, my firm represents former town finance director Mary Williamson, who alleges that after she identified questionable uses of public funds, her union removed her position from the bargaining unit.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

Last December, full- and part-time workers in the bargaining unit got a 4% increase, she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026

The 1,700 workers in the unit known as Magic United began bargaining their first contract in October 2024 and have yet to reach agreement with Disney over key issues.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026

"It's the old military game plan to use Suu Kyi as a bargaining chip," independent Myanmar analyst David Mathieson told AFP.

From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026

Their owners shouted, plying their wares; the customers shouted, bargaining for the best prices.

From "A Single Shard" by Linda Sue Park

Related Words

• arrangement
• contract
• deal
• negotiation
• pact
• transaction
• understanding