purchase

American  

[pur-chuhs] / ˈpɜr tʃəs /

verb (used with object)

• purchases,
  present (3rd person singular)
• purchased,
  past participle,  past
• purchasing
  present participle

1. to acquire by the payment of money or its equivalent; buy.

   Synonyms:

   procure, obtain, get

   Antonyms:

   sell

2. to acquire by effort, sacrifice, flattery, etc.

3. to influence by a bribe.

4. to be sufficient to buy.

   Twenty dollars purchases a subscription.

5. Law. to acquire (land or other property) by means other than inheritance.

6. to move, haul, or raise, especially by applying mechanical power.

7. to get a leverage on; apply a lever, pulley, or other aid to.

8. Obsolete. to procure, acquire, or obtain.

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verb (used without object)

• purchases,
  present (3rd person singular)
• purchased,
  past participle,  past
• purchasing
  present participle

1. to buy something.

noun

• purchases
  plural

1. acquisition by the payment of money or its equivalent; buying, or a single act of buying.

2. something that is purchased or bought.

3. something purchased, with respect to value in relation to price; buy.

   At three for a dollar they seemed like a good purchase.

4. Law. the acquisition of land or other property by means other than inheritance.

5. acquisition by means of effort, labor, etc..

   the purchase of comfort at the price of freedom.

6. a lever, pulley, or other device that provides mechanical advantage or power for moving or raising a heavy object.

   Synonyms:

   capstan, winch

7. an effective hold or position for applying power in moving or raising a heavy object; leverage.

8. any means of applying or increasing power, influence, etc.

9. the annual return or rent from land.

10. a firm grip or grasp, footing, etc., on something.

11. Obsolete. booty.

purchase British  

/ ˈpɜːtʃɪs /

verb

1. to obtain (goods, etc) by payment

2. to obtain by effort, sacrifice, etc

   to purchase one's freedom

3. to draw, haul, or lift (a load) with the aid of mechanical apparatus

4. to acquire (an estate) other than by inheritance

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noun

1. something that is purchased, esp an article bought with money

2. the act of buying

3. acquisition of an estate by any lawful means other than inheritance

4. a rough measure of the mechanical advantage achieved by a lever

5. a firm foothold, grasp, etc, as for climbing or levering something

6. a means of achieving some influence, advantage, etc

Synonym Usage

See buy.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonpurchase
  noun
• nonpurchaser
  noun
• prepurchase
  noun
• prepurchaser
  noun
• purchaser
  noun
• mispurchase
  verb (used with object)
• overpurchase
  verb (used with object)
• quasi-purchased
  adjective
• unpurchased
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• purchases
  plural

Participles

• purchasing
  present
• purchased
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• purchase
  simple
• purchases
  simple
• have purchased
  perfect
• has purchased
  perfect
• am purchasing
  progressive
• are purchasing
  progressive
• is purchasing
  progressive
• have been purchasing
  perfect progressive
• has been purchasing
  perfect progressive

Past

• purchased
  simple
• had purchased
  perfect
• was purchasing
  progressive
• were purchasing
  progressive
• had been purchasing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will purchase
  simple
• will have purchased
  perfect
• will be purchasing
  progressive
• will have been purchasing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of purchase

First recorded before 1150; (for the verb) Middle English purchasen, from Anglo-French purchacer “to seek to obtain, procure,” from pur- (from Latin prō pro ¹ ) + chacer “to chase” ( see chase ¹); noun derivative of the verb

Explanation

When you purchase a pair of shoes, you buy them. If you want to gain purchase, or favor, with new friends, you might tell them about your recent purchase of chocolate, and offer to share. Purchase can refer to the act of buying or the thing you bought. In 1803, the United States paid France approximately $15,000,000 for 800,000 acres of land which was called Louisiana, in a transaction known as the Louisiana Purchase. In this transaction, the purchase nearly doubled the size of the U.S. — the territory purchased comprises about 23 percent of current U.S. land.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

purchase purchases purchased purchasing

Sturgeon has denied any knowledge of his crimes, which included using party funds to purchase a motorhome and dozens of luxury goods.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

Albertsons CEO Susan Morris made her first open-market stock purchase after weak earnings and a lowered outlook sent Albertsons shares to record lows.

From Barron's ● Aug. 8, 2026

We hope to sell it in a few years and purchase a summer condo in either Maine or Massachusetts.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 8, 2026

The FCC in February approved Charter’s proposed purchase of Cox’s residential cable, commercial fiber, cloud and information technology businesses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026

Seven shimmied her shoulders, pretending she was shaking off her fears, found purchase on a knob, and began to work her way up.

From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega

It also paid $4.18 billion to buy back about 8.6 million Class B shares at a weighted average price of $485.95, with most of the purchases made in June.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 8, 2026

The event was a smashing success, he said afterward, bringing in a record $5.1 million — up from $1.1 million at last year’s annual fundraiser — via donations and silent auction purchases.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

And as float increases, so does SpaceX’s float-adjusted weighting in major indexes, which can drive purchases from passive investors.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026

Such partnerships also let automakers trim costs through shared purchases and engineering.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

But among themselves, as I listened to them excitedly discussing their purchases, they seemed like young men anywhere off on a holiday.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

“As a result of this, Amazon sent an email to all purchasers of the Colsen Fire Pit, including the one purchased by plaintiff,” the complaint read.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Dalziel notes that acetaminophen and ibuprofen are among the medicines most often prescribed or purchased over the counter for babies around the world.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026

Their California property—a four-bedroom, four-bathroom mock Tudor abode in Pacific Palisades—was purchased by the duo for $2.55 million in 1990.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026

When I purchased a copy of Evie’s print magazine in May, I was alarmed at how the magazine not only promoted radical skinniness but also discouraged women from healthy habits like exercise.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026

That evening, Mom and Dad gave me my Christmas present: a pair of turquoise and silver earrings they had purchased from a Navajo woman.

From "Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus" by Dusti Bowling

The 48-hour purchasing windows were granted through random lottery, but even a guaranteed slot to purchase didn’t prevent headaches as the ticketing system was fraught with technical glitches and high website traffic.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

The minister also outlined that a local farmer approached Daera staff at the scene to indicate a potential interest in purchasing some of the animals and that "operations were halted".

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

The S&P Global Canada services purchasing managers index climbed to 49.1 in July.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

Net dollar retention rate, a measure of recurring revenue retained from existing customers over 12 months, was 136% at the end of the second quarter, thanks to customers purchasing additional licenses and AI credit add-ons.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026

The society set about purchasing boards and constructing coffins.

From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy

Related Words

• acquire
• earn
• invest
• pick up
• procure
• redeem
• shop
• take