negotiation
Americannoun
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mutual discussion and arrangement of the terms of a transaction or agreement.
the negotiation of a treaty.
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the act or process of negotiating.
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an instance or the result of negotiating.
noun
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a discussion set up or intended to produce a settlement or agreement
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the act or process of negotiating
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of negotiation
1570–80; < Latin negōtiātiōn- (stem of negōtiātiō ) a doing of business, equivalent to negōtiāt ( us ) ( see negotiate) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
A negotiation is a business-oriented conversation where two sides argue, discuss, and compromise to reach some agreement. When you hear the word negotiation, you know there are two sides and they're willing to talk to each other. In sports, the owners and the players union go through a negotiation to get a new contract. Parents and kids might have a negotiation over curfew time. Negotiation implies that both sides are willing to give something up and compromise. If your side won't give an inch, then you're not ready for negotiation.
Vocabulary lists containing negotiation
Franklin D. Roosevelt, "A Date That Will Live In Infamy" (1941)
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"Marriage is a Private Affair" by Chinua Achebe
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "N"
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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.
A ceasefire on April 8 halted the conflict, but negotiation efforts, including historic face to face talks hosted in Islamabad have so far failed to yield a lasting agreement.
From Barron's • May 22, 2026
The fact prices could fall further following a bullish U.S. crude stock drawdown for last week “tells me it’s more likely than not some kind of negotiation is happening,” says BOK Financial’s Dennis Kissler.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
The union says Transport for London "has not made any attempt to engage in negotiation meetings to resolve this dispute".
From BBC • May 18, 2026
“It makes it a fool’s errand to be able to predict because it’s less about logic and more about negotiation tactics.”
From MarketWatch • May 13, 2026
When in English, ‘twas thus: “No, sir, this, this—Aye, you, this”—There was much negotiation, and a tune played or sung, taken up by others, learned by those newly hearing it.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
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.
