noun
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an order; command (often in the phrases do or follow the bidding of , at someone's bidding )
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an invitation; summons
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the act of making bids, as at an auction or in bridge
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bridge a group of bids considered collectively, esp those made on a particular deal
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of bidding
Middle English word dating back to 1125–75; see origin at bid 1, -ing 1
Explanation
A person's bidding is what he or she tells you to do for them. You do your brother's bidding when he asks you to bring him his shoes and you comply. Doing your boss's bidding is usually part of a job description, although doing your cousin's or boyfriend's bidding usually isn't required — at least, it shouldn't be. When you are invited to eat at a friend's house, you might have to watch a slide show from his trip to Hawaii after dinner at his bidding. Bidding stems from the verb bid, with its Old English root of biddan, "ask, entreat, beseech, or order."
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.
See Examples For:
But even some of the grants slated to fund more traditional human rights projects skirt federal requirements for competitive bidding that are meant to deter waste, fraud and abuse.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
A spending cap, or salary cap, could limit the earnings potential of top athletes because it would prevent an open bidding process.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
The new model will apply to both British and international firms bidding for public contracts.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
The overture was aimed at winning over investors during a bidding war with Netflix.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
I think about all the times I blindly followed him around, doing his bidding, happy that there was a place for me in his world.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
"Not only will we wipe out every potential influence on public biddings – we will also make the process much faster, much more efficient and totally accountable."
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025
In a 2013 email to dozens of senior staff at Siemens China, the manager, Cao Yong Sheng, pointed to a “huge gap between biddings and contracts,” and asked, “Where’s the gap going?”
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 20, 2021
Peter reluctantly admitted that Mr. Lukach, when inclined, could use his prowess as a healer for darker biddings.
From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2017
Some land being put up for sale, after biddings by the well-to-do residents, an old dealer in a very small way, as was supposed, bid above them all.
From Round About a Great Estate by Jefferies, Richard
Even such biddings as to tell one side of oars to hold her, or another to row or to back-water, come at first falteringly from his lips.
From Boating by Woodgate, W. B.
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.
