bazaar
Americannoun
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(esp in the Orient) a market area, esp a street of small stalls
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a sale in aid of charity, esp of miscellaneous secondhand or handmade articles
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a shop where a large variety of goods is sold
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of bazaar
1590–1600; earlier bazarro < Italian ≪ Persian bāzār market
Explanation
A bazaar is a market that has rows and rows of little shops selling miscellaneous stuff — like tube socks, velvet paintings, and corn on the cob. Bazaar is originally a Persian word, and means "marketplace" all over the Middle East. The word was picked up by the Italians, and spread through Europe and into English. At a bazaar in Istanbul, you'd find food, electronics, clothes — useful stuff. In English, we tend to use bazaar for something closer to a flea market. Although they sound alike, bazaar has no relation to bizarre (the super weird).
Vocabulary lists containing bazaar
Commonly Confused Words, List 1
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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.
See Examples For:
Within this spiritual bazaar, fashion became a place where people could reimagine Christian symbols, figures and history in new ways.
From Salon ● May 17, 2026
It looked disorientingly familiar to a fellow Egyptian American: Art from Egypt lined the walls, with brass pieces and calligraphy you’d find in a Cairo bazaar.
From Slate ● Apr. 29, 2026
Now open 365 days, as the sign on Olympic Boulevard states, Santee Alley is our very own bazaar.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 13, 2026
Most of the shops in the Tajrish bazaar were closed.
From Barron's ● Mar. 3, 2026
Khal Drogo and his bloodriders led them through the great bazaar of the Western Market, down the broad ways beyond.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
The bazaars should normally be buzzing with activity as Nowruz approaches at the end of the month.
From Barron's ● Mar. 3, 2026
Like most Indians, she has only ever hunted for white label bargains in street-side bazaars all her life.
From BBC ● Feb. 22, 2026
A few went to Dartmouth, as the writer did himself; others grew up in the back streets and bazaars of the Punjabi capital of Lahore.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
Some set up full bazaars with shot glasses and keychains for sale alongside baseball hats and T-shirts.
From Slate ● Nov. 27, 2023
“The result is a sad jumble of shops, booths, and bazaars often unpleasing in themselves and incongruous when taken together.”
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
