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:
It was first mentioned in 1740 in an inventory of Louis Henri de Bourbon, Prince of Condé, drawn up following his death, the Château de Chantilly said.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
Oil futures ended the session mixed with Brent modestly lower while WTI gained on bullish inventory data and reports that the U.S. could ease some sanctions on tankers that form part of shadow fleets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Natural gas storage is expected to have risen by 75 Bcf last week, according to a WSJ survey of analysts, which would reduce the inventory surplus over the five-year average for a ninth straight week.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
An initiative co-founded by McCormick, Climate TRACE, harnesses the technology to track emissions around the planet and build an inventory of the pollutants.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
She was taking her unlikely inventory very seriously.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
Restricting distillate exports could help replenish domestic inventories, though it would shift the supply squeeze to trading partners in Europe and Latin America.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
“Global aluminum inventories remain historically low at approximately 42 days of consumption, leaving the market with limited capacity to absorb further supply disruptions or stronger-than-expected demand,” Oplinger says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
"We have been able to provide emissions inventories to every city and a lot of them now can make a climate action plan," he said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
Low inventories and heightened geopolitical risks are adding further support.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Other times he ran messages, stood at guard, mucked out stables, fletched arrows, assisted Maester Aemon with his birds or Bowen Marsh with his counts and inventories.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
The repeal will primarily affect California and nine other Western states, which are home to more than 95% of inventoried roadless areas, the agency said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
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
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
He had inventoried all that he had, or didn’t have.
From "The Voyage Of The Frog" by Gary Paulsen
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
He went from working as a signals analyst to a job that few Marines want, inventorying military gear.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 11, 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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