inventory
Americannoun
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inventories
plural
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a complete listing of merchandise or stock on hand, work in progress, raw materials, finished goods on hand, etc., made each year by a business concern.
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the objects or items represented on such a list, as a merchant's stock of goods.
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the aggregate value of a stock of goods.
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raw material from the time of its receipt at an industrial plant for manufacturing purposes to the time it is sold.
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a detailed, often descriptive, list of articles, giving the code number, quantity, and value of each; catalog.
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a formal list of movables, as of a merchant's stock of goods.
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a formal list of the property of a person or estate.
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a tally of one's personality traits, aptitudes, skills, etc., for use in counseling and guidance.
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a catalog of natural resources, especially a count or estimate of wildlife and game in a particular area.
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the act of making a catalog or detailed listing.
verb (used with object)
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inventories,
present (3rd person singular)
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inventoried,
past participle, past
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inventorying
present participle
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to make an inventory of; enter in an inventory; catalog.
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to take stock of; evaluate.
to inventory one's life and accomplishments.
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to summarize.
to inventory the progress in chemistry.
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to keep an available supply of (merchandise); stock.
verb (used without object)
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inventories,
present (3rd person singular)
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inventoried,
past participle, past
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inventorying
present participle
noun
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a detailed list of articles, goods, property, etc
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(often plural) accounting
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the amount or value of a firm's current assets that consist of raw materials, work in progress, and finished goods; stock
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such assets individually
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verb
Usage
What does inventory mean? An inventory is a complete list of all merchandise or stock of items owned by or available from a business. At a store, an inventory is the complete list of all items for sale at the store. At a manufacturer, an inventory is a complete list of all the raw materials they have, as well as finished items and items being created. An inventory is also the specific set of products to sell, as in The store’s inventory of superhero capes is running low and will probably sell out soon. An inventory can also refer to figurative belongings, such as a person’s personality traits and skills. To inventory means to add things to an inventory list, whether a literal or figurative list, as in I inventoried my options for colleges and chose the school I’ll attend next year. Example: Can you take inventory tonight so we can be ready for the rush tomorrow?
Synonym Usage
See list 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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preinventorynoun
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inventoriableadjective
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inventorialadjective
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overinventoriedadjective
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inventoriallyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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inventorysimple
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inventoriessimple
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have inventoriedperfect
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has inventoriedperfect
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am inventoryingprogressive
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are inventoryingprogressive
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is inventoryingprogressive
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have been inventoryingperfect progressive
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has been inventoryingperfect progressive
Past
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inventoriedsimple
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had inventoriedperfect
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was inventoryingprogressive
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were inventoryingprogressive
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had been inventoryingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of inventory
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English inventorie, from Medieval Latin inventōrium; see invent, -tory 2
Explanation
An inventory is an itemized list of everything you have. So you better take inventory of what’s in the fridge before going grocery shopping. Otherwise you'll end up with more jars of mustard that you don't need. The noun form of inventory developed in the early 15th century from the Middle French inventaire, meaning “detailed list of goods.” It's most commonly used in retail: a shop's inventory is everything that they have in stock, ready to sell. You can also use inventory as a verb when you want to describe the act of listing out the merchandise or supplies you have on hand.
Vocabulary lists containing inventory
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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:
The Minnesota-based maker of off-road vehicles and boats paused its buyback program in 2024, as it worked to reduce dealer inventory following a postpandemic slump in retail sales.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
They withdraw money directly from company bank accounts, daily or weekly, even if that leaves firms short of funds for payroll, inventory or other operating expenses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
A measure of underlying demand that carves out more volatile government, inventory and international trade numbers also strengthened.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
As sellers hold off on selling while they wait for a better housing market, current housing inventory levels have yet to match home-buying demand.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 28, 2026
I took an item out of my inventory, a wand that could detect hidden traps, magical or otherwise.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
“The last months have shown how critical oil inventories are, not just the total number, but the ability to access them.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
Businesses also boosted inventories substantially to replace depleted warehouses and to keep up with rising customer demand.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026
U.S. crude oil inventories were down last week in a fourth consecutive weekly decline, while gasoline stocks rose and distillate stocks fell, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
Gasoline may respond more quickly, said Yilmaz, while diesel could remain comparatively supported through winter because inventories are still tight and middle-distillate supply remains constrained.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 28, 2026
They wanted to shape things/design things, create things, sell things, buy things, keep track of inventories, do somebody else’s taxes, and read somebody else’s X-rays from half a world away.
From "The World Is Flat" by Thomas L. Friedman
The proposal would rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, enacted in the final days of the Clinton administration, which barred development across vast areas of public forests and grasslands designated as "inventoried roadless areas."
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
“Helfenstein also evaluated and inventoried looted items, and arranged for their packing and shipment to Germany.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 10, 2026
In total, the rescission would apply to nearly 45 million acres of the nearly 60 million acres of inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest system, she said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2025
Repairing and updating the inventoried aircraft so they are airworthy takes about the same amount of resources as building an all-new aircraft, he added.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 13, 2024
Once my trip was booked, I inventoried everything in my hideout and packed the items I wanted to take with me into an old rucksack.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
The plan provides for the inventorying and storage of its remaining heavy weapons under Palestinian supervision, potentially removing the most significant obstacle to advancing the Trump-backed peace initiative for Gaza.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
"Carbon inventorying is still an evolving science," said Yunyu Zhang, lead author and graduate student from the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 28, 2024
One by one, family members and friends speak this line to Vanya before inventorying their own monumental unhappiness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2023
Across North America, there are an estimated 170 fireflies species, which are technically beetles in the order Coleoptera, but inventorying them is a challenge.
From Salon ● Sep. 21, 2023
He looks me over as if inventorying my whole being.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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