noun
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an order; command (often in the phrases do or follow the bidding of , at someone's bidding )
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an invitation; summons
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the act of making bids, as at an auction or in bridge
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bridge a group of bids considered collectively, esp those made on a particular deal
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of bidding
Middle English word dating back to 1125–75; see origin at bid 1, -ing 1
Explanation
A person's bidding is what he or she tells you to do for them. You do your brother's bidding when he asks you to bring him his shoes and you comply. Doing your boss's bidding is usually part of a job description, although doing your cousin's or boyfriend's bidding usually isn't required — at least, it shouldn't be. When you are invited to eat at a friend's house, you might have to watch a slide show from his trip to Hawaii after dinner at his bidding. Bidding stems from the verb bid, with its Old English root of biddan, "ask, entreat, beseech, or order."
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:
Then Netflix and Skydance got into a bidding war, and Ellison prevailed, thanks to money from his father, Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
The tank in your basement is now in a bidding war with a continent.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 28, 2026
Ford, who’s bidding to become Nevada’s first Black governor, has one of those up-by-the-bootstraps biographies that campaign consultants see as spun gold.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2026
Women's world number three Fallon Sherrock has been named among 24 contestants bidding to beat Luke Littler and walk away with £501,000.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
She looked back once, as though bidding Oak Hill Manor farewell forever.
From "The Old Willis Place" by Mary Downing Hahn
"Not only will we wipe out every potential influence on public biddings – we will also make the process much faster, much more efficient and totally accountable."
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025
In a 2013 email to dozens of senior staff at Siemens China, the manager, Cao Yong Sheng, pointed to a “huge gap between biddings and contracts,” and asked, “Where’s the gap going?”
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 20, 2021
Peter reluctantly admitted that Mr. Lukach, when inclined, could use his prowess as a healer for darker biddings.
From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2017
Such was the result of judiciously drawing him on, by biddings for valueless books, on the part of those whom he had outbid in the objects of their desire.
From The Book-Hunter A New Edition, with a Memoir of the Author by John Hill Burton
His biddings were usually silent, accompanied by the elevation and fall of his cane, or by an abrupt nod of the head.'
From The Book-Hunter in London Historical and Other Studies of Collectors and Collecting by W. (William) Roberts
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