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• caveat emptor
  caveat emptor

  noun

  let the buyer beware: the principle that the seller of a product cannot be held responsible for its quality unless it is guaranteed in a warranty.
• Caveat emptor
  Caveat emptor

  Latin for “Let the buyer beware.” It means that a customer should be cautious and alert to the possibility of being cheated: “Caveat emptor is the first rule of buying a used car.”

caveat emptor

American  

[kav-ee-aht emp-tawr, -at, kah-vee-, key-, kah-we-aht emp-tohr] / ˈkæv iˌɑt ˈɛmp tɔr, -ˌæt, ˈkɑ vi-, keɪ-, ˈkɑ wɛˌɑt ˈɛmp toʊr /

noun

1. let the buyer beware: the principle that the seller of a product cannot be held responsible for its quality unless it is guaranteed in a warranty.

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caveat emptor British  

/ ˈɛmptɔː /

noun

1. the principle that the buyer must bear the risk for the quality of goods purchased unless they are covered by the seller's warranty

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Caveat emptor Cultural  

1. Latin for “Let the buyer beware.” It means that a customer should be cautious and alert to the possibility of being cheated: “Caveat emptor is the first rule of buying a used car.”

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Etymology

Origin of caveat emptor

Borrowed into English from Latin around 1515–25

Example Sentences

As the phrase goes in Latin — caveat emptor, or “let the buyer beware.”

From Seattle Times • Feb. 4, 2024

"This is one of the caveat emptor things that all foreign would-be acquirers should keep in mind."

From Reuters • Aug. 31, 2023

Do you see any universe in which there is a regulatory framework that has the caveat emptor stuff labeled out there the way you guys want it to be?

From Slate • Jan. 21, 2022

She cautioned the public to weigh “both potential benefits and risks,” to which I would add caveat emptor — buyer beware.

From New York Times • Mar. 8, 2021

This is clearly in exact harmony with the principle of "caveat emptor," under which all other purchases are made in our country and in England.

From Arguments before the Committee on Patents of the House of Representatives, on H. R. 11943, to Amend Title 60, Chapter 3, of the Revised Statutes of the United States Relating to Copyrights May 2, 1906. by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Patents