bid

[ bid ]

/ bɪd /

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bid ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), bade or (Archaic) bad for 1, 2, 5 or bid for 3, 4; bid·den or bid for 1, 2, 5 or bid for 3, 4; bid·ding.

to command; order; direct: to bid them depart.

to express (a greeting, farewell, benediction, or wish): to bid good night.

Commerce. to offer (a certain sum) as the price one will pay or charge: They bid $25,000 and got the contract.

Cards. to enter a bid of (a given quantity or suit): to bid two no-trump.

to summon by invitation; invite.

verb (used without object), bade or (Archaic) bad for 6 or bid for 7; bid·den or bid for 6 or bid for 7; bid·ding.

to command; order; direct: I will do as you bid.

to make a bid: She bid at the auction for the old chair.

noun

an act or instance of bidding.

Cards.

an offer to make a specified number of points or to take a specified number of tricks.
the amount of such an offer.
the turn of a person to bid.

an invitation: a bid to join the club.

an attempt to attain some goal or purpose: a bid for election.

Also called bid price. Stock Exchange. the highest price a prospective buyer is willing to pay for a security at a given moment.

Verb Phrases past and past participle bid, present participle bid·ding.

bid in, Commerce. to overbid all offers for (property) at an auction in order to retain ownership.

bid up, Commerce. to increase the market price of by increasing bids.

Nearby words

bicycle race, bicycle racing, bicyclic, bicyclic terpene, bicyclist, bid, bid adieu, bid in, bid price, bid up, bid-up

Idioms past bade or (Archaic) bad, past participle bid·den or bid, present participle bid·ding.

bid fair. fair¹(def 29).

Origin of bid

before 900; Middle English bidden, Old English biddan to beg, ask; cognate with Old Frisian bidda, Old Saxon biddian, Old High German bittan (German bitten), Old Norse bithja, Gothic bidjan; all < Germanic *bid-ja- (< Indo-European *bhidh-) command, akin to Greek peíthein to persuade, inspire with trust, English bide

SYNONYMS FOR bid

1 charge; require, enjoin.

3 offer, tender, proffer.

8 offer, proposal; proffer.

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Related formsbid·der, noun

Can be confusedbidder bitter

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bidder

It went up for auction on the website Williams & Williams and was snapped up by an anonymous Vietnamese bidder for $900,000.
America’s Tiniest Town Is Sold And Renamed PhinDeli Town Buford, Wyoming|Nina Strochlic|October 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He bid quickly and quietly against a second bidder until the lot reached $6.5 million.
Leonardo DiCaprio’s Big Christie’s Auction Brings in $38.8 Million|Isabel Wilkinson|May 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
"$450,000," called the auctioneer, pointing to a bidder in the crowd at Christie's.
Leonardo DiCaprio’s Big Christie’s Auction Brings in $38.8 Million|Isabel Wilkinson|May 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Bidder replied with a deprecating smile: "What other concerns are there of our importance and size?"
Dawson Black: Retail Merchant|Harold Whitehead

A man who had made money in iron-mines in the County of Durham was a bidder, and finally offered £240 for the holding.
Ireland Under Coercion (2nd ed.) (2 of 2) (1888)|William Henry Hurlbert
Second, he knows whether the bidder under consideration is dependable or inclined to skimp in hidden but essential points.
If You're Going to Live in the Country|Thomas H. Ormsbee and Richmond Huntley
But Mr. Bidder, dying to mount his hobby-horse, and not caring how, said it was not at all curious.
Ravenshoe|Henry Kingsley
Some players hesitate about doubling a bid of two, preferring to take the chance of forcing the bidder higher.
Auction of To-day|Milton C. Work

British Dictionary definitions for bidder

bid

/ (bɪd) /

verb bids, bidding, bad, bade, esp for senses 1, 2, 5, 7 bid, bidden or esp for senses 1, 2, 5, 7 bid

(often foll by for or against) to offer (an amount) in attempting to buy something, esp in competition with others as at an auction

commerce to respond to an offer by a seller by stating (the more favourable terms) on which one is willing to make a purchase

(tr) to say (a greeting, blessing, etc)to bid farewell

to order; commanddo as you are bid!

(intr usually foll by for) to attempt to attain power, etc

(tr) to invite; ask kindlyshe bade him sit down

bridge to declare in the auction before play how many tricks one expects to make

bid defiance to resist boldly

bid fair to seem probable

noun

an offer of a specified amount, as at an auction
the price offered

commerce

a statement by a buyer, in response to an offer by a seller, of the more favourable terms that would be acceptable
the price or other terms so stated

an attempt, esp an attempt to attain power

bridge

the number of tricks a player undertakes to make
a player's turn to make a bid

short for bid price

Word Origin for bid

Old English biddan; related to German bitten

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

bid

verb (used with object), bade or (Archaic) bad for 1, 2, 5 or bid for 3, 4; bid·den or bid for 1, 2, 5 or bid for 3, 4; bid·ding.

verb (used without object), bade or (Archaic) bad for 6 or bid for 7; bid·den or bid for 6 or bid for 7; bid·ding.

noun

Verb Phrases past and past participle bid, present participle bid·ding.

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms past bade or (Archaic) bad, past participle bid·den or bid, present participle bid·ding.

Origin of bid

Examples from the Web for bidder

British Dictionary definitions for bidder

bid

verb bids, bidding, bad, bade, esp for senses 1, 2, 5, 7 bid, bidden or esp for senses 1, 2, 5, 7 bid

noun

Word Origin for bid