haggle
Americanverb (used without object)
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to bargain in a petty, quibbling, and often contentious manner.
They spent hours haggling over the price of fish.
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to wrangle, dispute, or cavil.
The senators haggled interminably over the proposed bill.
verb (used with object)
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to mangle in cutting; hack.
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to settle on by haggling.
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Archaic. to harass with wrangling or haggling.
noun
verb
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to bargain or wrangle (over a price, terms of an agreement, etc); barter
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rare (tr) to hack
Other Word Forms
- haggler noun
- unhaggled adjective
- unhaggling adjective
Etymology
Origin of haggle
1275–1325; Middle English haggen to cut, chop (< Old Norse hǫggva to hew ) + -le
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.
Car buyers might be getting less inclined to haggle, or perhaps just don’t get as much traction in negotiations as they used to.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 2, 2026
In short: months and months of talking, as party leaders try to form a workable coalition and haggle over a government programme palatable to all sides.
From Barron's • Oct. 29, 2025
Through the ship’s computer, Mother, The Company directs them to investigate a transmission from, yes, a derelict alien vessel, prompting the coworkers to haggle over bonuses and hazard pay.
From Salon • Jul. 4, 2025
"Shop around for better deals, and haggle with your existing provider," says Alice Haine, from professional services group Evelyn Partners.
From BBC • Mar. 30, 2025
“I can probably haggle pretty well. But Barbarossa is crafty. I was there last time when Mosca sold him the other stuff.”
From "The Thief Lord" by Cornelia Funke
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.
