noun
-
a place where a public market is held
-
any centre where ideas, opinions, etc, are exchanged
-
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.
Despite concerns over a memory chip shortage and CEO transition, Best Buy is diversifying with a marketplace and advertising, and improving sales.
From Barron's • May 28, 2026
"To do so earlier would aid counterfeiters and cause confusion in the marketplace, lowering confidence in U.S. currency."
From BBC • May 28, 2026
In spring 2025, when Kelly Monahan was managing director of Upwork’s research institute, the work marketplace generated digital humans for her and a colleague.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
This is just the ultimate expression of data marketplace with zero rules.
From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026
How can I ever walk free in the world, after the clap of those hands in the marketplace that were plainly trying to send me away?
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
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.
