broker
Americannoun
-
brokers
plural
-
an agent who buys or sells for a principal on a commission basis without having title to the property.
-
a person who functions as an intermediary between two or more parties in negotiating agreements, bargains, or the like.
verb (used with object)
-
brokers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
brokered,
past participle, past
-
brokering
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
brokers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
brokered,
past participle, past
-
brokering
present participle
noun
-
an agent who, acting on behalf of a principal, buys or sells goods, securities, etc, in return for a commission
insurance broker
-
(formerly) short for stockbroker
-
a dealer in second-hand goods
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
brokersimple
-
brokerssimple
-
have brokeredperfect
-
has brokeredperfect
-
am brokeringprogressive
-
are brokeringprogressive
-
is brokeringprogressive
-
have been brokeringperfect progressive
-
has been brokeringperfect progressive
Past
-
brokeredsimple
-
had brokeredperfect
-
was brokeringprogressive
-
were brokeringprogressive
-
had been brokeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of broker
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English broco(u)r, from Anglo-French abrocour, broco(u)r “middleman, wine merchant”; compare Old Provençal abrocador, perhaps based on Spanish alboroque “gift or drink concluding a transaction” (from Arabic al-burūk “the gift, gratuity”), with -ador, from Latin -ātor -ator; alternatively, from Old French brocheor, brokeor “wine merchant,” derivative of broche ( see broach ( def. ))
Explanation
A broker is someone who buys or sells for someone else for a commission. You may go to a real estate company to get a broker to help you buy a house. In Middle English broker meant "peddler or retailer." Nowadays a broker still sells things — but she's acting as an agent making deals for someone else and collecting a commission for all that work. Used as a verb, broker means to arrange a deal or negotiate. Working for an advisory firm, a broker may convince you to invest in a company — so the broker would broker a business deal.
Vocabulary lists containing broker
This Week in Words: January 13 - 19, 2018
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Hip-Hop as Culture" and "I Am Somebody"
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for February 27–March 5, 2021
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
But after golf influencer Dave Fink revealed evidence of the broker network to his viewers, the problem became public.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026
Burnham said the "UK has a unique position as an honest broker", with close ties to the US and the European Union.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Though HOAs are heavily criticized online, home buyers generally don’t deliberately seek to avoid homes that are part of one, said Garrett, the Louisville real-estate broker.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
The broker keeps a buy recommendation and A$5.04/share price target.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
Once a standard is established around all these real estate processes, the broker can focus a lot more on you and your needs, not on chasing documents.
From "The World Is Flat" by Thomas L. Friedman
Consumers filed some 300,000 complaints last year with CMS about brokers who enrolled them in or switched them to new plans without their authorization.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
Farmers are in tight competition on prices, and price increases often come from brokers and distributors after crops leave the farm.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
Sports teams often enjoyed long and beneficial relationships with brokers, who bought out blocks of season tickets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
But today's deals have much stronger affordability checks and do not pose the same risks, says David Hollingworth, associate director at brokers L&C Mortgages.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
It had been hard for them to wriggle free of the brokers who covered rich people and to get into the arms of brokers who covered big, stock market–investing institutions.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
The creation of the editorial board was a compromise brokered among the coalition of state attorneys general.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
The AU, which brokered the agreement, has not issued a statement on the recent clashes.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
Instead, they act as a marketplace, giving customers access to brokered CDs issued by other banks and sold through their brokerage platforms.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
Israel and Lebanon have signed a framework agreement in Washington after several days of negotiations brokered by the US.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
We survived the Holocaust because of the enormous risks Schindler took and the bribes and backroom deals he brokered to keep us, his Jewish workers, safe from the gas chambers of Auschwitz.
From "The Boy on the Wooden Box" by Leon Leyson
Jesus was not brokering a deal between two powers.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
US-led shuttle diplomacy aimed at brokering trilateral talks to end the war has stalled amid the Middle East conflict.
From Barron's ● May 23, 2026
When China was credited with brokering the Saudi-Iran rapprochement in 2023, the two nations had conducted years of back-channel talks and simply required a low-risk broker to underwrite the final agreement.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026
European leaders and the prime minister of Pakistan, which is brokering U.S.-Iran talks, warned that the operations could be putting the truce at risk.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2026
“But I have access to Madoc. I have access to Balekin. I’m our best shot at brokering a deal.”
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
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.
