barter

American  

[bahr-ter] / ˈbɑr tər /

verb (used without object)

1. to trade by exchange of commodities rather than by the use of money.

   Synonyms:

   traffic

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verb (used with object)

1. to exchange in trade, as one commodity for another; trade.

   Synonyms:

   traffic

2. to bargain away unwisely or dishonorably (usually followed byaway ).

   bartering away his pride for material gain.

noun

1. the act or practice of bartering.

2. items or an item for bartering.

   We arrived with new barter for the villagers.

barter British  

/ ˈbɑːtə /

verb

1. to trade (goods, services, etc) in exchange for other goods, services, etc, rather than for money

   the refugees bartered for food

2. (intr) to haggle over the terms of such an exchange; bargain

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noun

1. trade by the exchange of goods

barter Cultural  

1. The exchange of goods or services for other goods or services, rather than for money.

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Related Words

See trade.

Other Word Forms

• barterer
  noun
• outbarter
  verb (used with object)
• unbartered
  adjective
• unbartering
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of barter

1400–50; late Middle English, apparently < Anglo-French, Old French bareter, barater ( see barrator), with shift of sense

Explanation

If you make a deal with your brother to change the oil in his car in exchange for one of his video games, what you’ve just done is barter — or trade goods and services. Before money was invented, people traded goods and services in order to acquire the things they needed. An individual might trade, for example, a cow in exchange for help building a shed, or a dozen eggs in exchange for several yards of cloth. To this day people continue to barter for goods and services although this method of commerce is no longer widespread. The verb barter has survived into modern times to refer to making a transaction that involves the exchange of goods or services rather than money.

Example Sentences

Instead, they arranged to trade services through a barter system in which state-backed Chinese companies in Iran build infrastructure there as compensation for oil.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

Plus, it creates new headaches for companies, many of which would likely jockey for workarounds as the administration has shown a willingness to barter tariffs for other commitments, he adds.

From Barron's • Feb. 11, 2026

Try to get a car at an auto rental agency without booking it online first; you might as well attempt to barter your watch and three chickens as payment.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 19, 2026

Together, the data support a new interpretation of Monte Sierpe as an Indigenous center for barter and exchange that may have evolved into an accounting system under Inca rule.

From Science Daily • Nov. 10, 2025

Maybe we can’t barter our feelings away, trading good deeds for bad ones and expecting to become whole.

From "Girl in the Blue Coat" by Monica Hesse

Related Words

• haggle