advertising

American  

[ad-ver-tahy-zing] / ˈæd vərˌtaɪ zɪŋ /

Or advertizing

noun

1. the act or practice of calling public attention to one's product, service, need, etc., especially by paid announcements in newspapers and magazines, over radio or television, on billboards, etc..

   to get more customers by advertising.

2. paid announcements; advertisements.

3. the profession of planning, designing, and writing advertisements.

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advertising British  

/ ˈædvəˌtaɪzɪŋ /

noun

1. the promotion of goods or services for sale through impersonal media, such as radio or television

2. the business that specializes in creating such publicity

3. advertisements collectively; publicity

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Other Word Forms

• counteradvertising noun
• proadvertising adjective
• proadvertizing adjective
• self-advertising adjective

Etymology

Origin of advertising

First recorded in 1520–30; advertise + -ing ¹

Explanation

Advertising is the act of drawing the public’s attention to something, usually to sell it. Whatever is written on the sandwich board you're wearing is what you're advertising. Advertising is getting the word out — whether it’s on a billboard, in a magazine ad, on a commercial, on the side of a blimp, or by singing it from the highest mountaintop. If you want to let people know about a product, service, or candidate, you run an advertising campaign. The word advertising may also be used for the advertisements themselves or the business of creating advertisements.

Example Sentences

Zuckerberg spotlighted a new Muse Spark AI model built by Meta's nascent "Superintelligence Lab", saying its technology will be put to work in Meta's offerings such as smartglasses and its advertising system.

From Barron's • Apr. 29, 2026

The soldier's wife, meanwhile, makes frequent online posts about homes for sale or rent, advertising her listings and calls for tenants through Better Homes and Coldwell Banker Advantage.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

WSJ: How do you design a marketing strategy for a globally known brand that hasn’t really bothered to do much advertising?

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 27, 2026

However, he argued that Domino’s had the profits and the advertising budget to outlast competitors that are leaning harder on discounting and, in turn, putting more pressure on their chains’ franchisees.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 27, 2026

She found herself looking at Lane as if he were a stranger, or a poster advertising a brand of linoleum, across the aisle of a subway car.

From "Franny and Zooey" by J. D. Salinger