noun
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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
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.
This is just the ultimate expression of data marketplace with zero rules.
From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026
The online marketplace for short-term rentals announced Wednesday new features and services, including the addition of thousands of boutique and independent hotels to its platform.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026
Having insurance is a good first step, says Rebecca Greenstein, a veterinary expert at pet-services marketplace Rover.com.
From MarketWatch • May 19, 2026
It’s a deeper reflection, he suggested, of why and how these scandals keep happening within the “contemporary guru economy,” which has three elements that don’t mix well together: moral authority, celebrity culture and the marketplace.
From Salon • May 19, 2026
“This is my maa and baap and my brothers and our cow, which we had to sell so I could marry you. This is our marketplace, where my baap has a stall to write letters.”
From "Homeless Bird" by Gloria Whelan
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.
