marketplace
Americannoun
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a place where a public market is held
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any centre where ideas, opinions, etc, are exchanged
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the commercial world of buying and selling
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of marketplace
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at market, place
Explanation
A marketplace is a location where people buy goods. When you travel to a new city, you should visit a marketplace to purchase souvenirs for your friends back home. Marketplace often describes an outdoor market where vendors sell produce, meat, crafts, and other goods. Depending where you are, a marketplace might be called a bazaar, a palengke, or a souk. A more general meaning is an economic system or market, or simply the everyday world where things get bought and sold. You should probably test your new lasagna-flavored ice cream in the marketplace to see if anyone will want to buy it!
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:
Under the deal, Russia would release an initial 300,000 tonnes of diesel "to the American and global marketplace" followed by an additional 500,000 tonnes in November.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
That’s why we’re cautiously hopeful that after the midterms, Congress will seize the opportunity to make prior authorization and broader insurance marketplace reforms a priority.
From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2026
The one-of-a-kind nature of goods on the marketplace helps, said Shweta Khajuria, head of global internet research at Wolfe Research.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Additionally, this porchfest features a coinciding dog parade and a marketplace.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
You couldn't trust a patsy like that, especially in the marketplace, so, armed with a thick stack of coupons, our father did all the shopping himself.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
The divisions could share enterprise customers and build on Uber’s expertise in running marketplaces that match supply and demand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
There’s an ongoing desperate scramble to find available AI chips and data-center infrastructure from cloud providers, neoclouds and a number of upstart marketplaces offering quick access to computing power.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
The final version excludes resale marketplaces from the definition of a speculative ticket seller.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026
Steve Garidis from the Bicycle Association said retailers have invested in developing safe and legal e-bikes but this can be "undermined by illegal and unsafe products often sold through online marketplaces to unsuspecting consumers".
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
He described, in his halting way, a city of whitewashed houses and tile roofs, of vines spilling over walls, of busy marketplaces and beautiful gardens.
From "The House of the Scorpion" by Nancy Farmer
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.
