bargain
Americannoun
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an advantageous purchase, especially one acquired at less than the usual cost.
The sale offered bargains galore.
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an agreement between parties settling what each shall give and take or perform and receive in a transaction.
- Synonyms:
- transaction, arrangement, stipulation
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such an agreement as affecting one of the parties.
a losing bargain.
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something acquired by bargaining.
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Informal. an agreeable person, especially one who causes no trouble or difficulty (usually used in negative constructions).
His boss is no bargain.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
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to arrange by bargain; negotiate.
to bargain a new wage increase.
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to anticipate as likely to occur; expect (usually followed by a clause).
I'll bargain that he's going to give those company directors plenty of trouble.
verb phrase
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bargain on to expect or anticipate; count or rely on.
You can't bargain on what she'll do in this situation.
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bargain for to anticipate or take into account.
The job turned out to be more than he had bargained for.
idioms
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strike a bargain, to make a bargain; agree to terms.
They were unable to strike a bargain because the owner's asking price was more than the prospective buyer could afford.
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in / into the bargain, over and above what has been stipulated; moreover; besides.
The new housekeeper proved to be a fine cook in the bargain.
noun
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an agreement or contract establishing what each party will give, receive, or perform in a transaction between them
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something acquired or received in such an agreement
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something bought or offered at a low price
a bargain at an auction
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( as modifier )
a bargain price
-
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in excess of what has been stipulated; besides
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to agree on terms
verb
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(intr) to negotiate the terms of an agreement, transaction, etc
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(tr) to exchange, as in a bargain
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to arrive at (an agreement or settlement)
Related Words
Other Word Forms
- bargainable adjective
- bargainer noun
- bargaining noun
- outbargain verb (used with object)
- prebargain verb (used with object)
- probargaining adjective
- unbargained adjective
Etymology
Origin of bargain
First recorded in 1300–50; (for the verb) Middle English bargaynen, from Anglo-French, Old French bargai(g)ner, probably from Frankish borganjan (unrecorded); cognate with Old High German bor(a)gēn “to look after” ( German borgen “to lend”); (for the noun) Middle English bargayn, from Anglo-French, Old French bargai(g)ne, bargain, derivative of the verb; borrow
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.
Then they become bargain hunters, natural contrarians, fans of the long view and largely disciplinarians when it comes to how much a business is actually worth.
From MarketWatch
Simmons’ stock purchase suggests he believes the shares—which trade at 26 times forward earnings, up from just 13 times at the start of the year—are still a bargain.
From Barron's
However, every year as supermarkets compete for our Christmas custom many slash the prices of their bags of veg as low as 8p so there are bargains to be had.
From BBC
Not necessarily, according to aviation-industry experts — though there have been encouraging signs for bargain seekers throughout the past year.
From MarketWatch
In September 2001, after Enron shares had fallen about 70% from peak levels, he saw the stock as a bargain and raised his rating to strong buy, less than three months before the bankruptcy filing.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
