buy-in

American  

[bahy-in] / ˈbaɪˌɪn /

noun

1. an act or instance of buying in.

2. the deliberate submission of a false bid, too low to be met, in order to win a contract.

3. Poker. the chips purchased by a player from the banker, occasionally a set amount required to enter a specific competition or game.

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buy in British  

verb

1. (tr) to buy back for the owner (an item in an auction) at or below the reserve price

2. (intr) to purchase shares in a company

3. (intr) to buy goods or securities on the open market against a defaulting seller, charging this seller with any market differences

4. Also: buy into.  informal (tr) to pay money to secure a position or place for (someone, esp oneself) in some organization, esp a business or club

5. to purchase (goods, etc) in large quantities

   to buy in for the winter

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noun

1. the purchase of a company by a manager or group who does not work for that company

Etymology

Origin of buy-in

Noun use of verb phrase buy in

Example Sentences

Without buy-in from the press, Objection AI becomes performative.

From Salon • Apr. 23, 2026

“Netflix treats employees like adults who can handle difficult information and I love that. This creates enormous feelings of commitment and buy-in from employees,” Hastings wrote in the book.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 18, 2026

Socialize: To share an idea or proposal with key decisionmakers in order to solicit feedback and gain approval or buy-in to make a decision.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 26, 2026

These investors’ average Bitcoin buy-in price was around $83,000, according to a recent post on X by James Seyffart, a research analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence—suggesting an average loss of about 18%, based on Thursday’s price.

From Barron's • Feb. 5, 2026

“But you need buy-in from everyone in the group. Give it some more thought. How can you help the shelter? How can each of you get something out of the experience?”

From "The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl" by Stacy McAnulty