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reserve price

American  

noun

  1. floor price.


reserve price British  

noun

  1. Also called (esp Scot and US): upset price. the minimum price acceptable to the owner of property being auctioned or sold

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of reserve price

First recorded in 1915–20


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:

As a yearling, the colt didn’t meet his reserve price of $95,000, so Kahn and Hidden Brook pointed him to a 2-year-old in training sale last year at Ocala.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026

When the Ram's Head came up for auction, Taylor's organisation, Domestic Abuse WA12, had not got enough money together in time, and the pub did not meet its reserve price to sell.

From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026

Davina Perrin, who scored a century aged 18 in last year's eliminator, has set her reserve price at £37,500.

From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026

No stalking horse bid would be sought to set a reserve price in the auction, according to a court filing.

From Reuters ● Oct. 23, 2023

The auctioneer's idea of what could constitute a fair reserve price shook, but did not quite overthrow her.

From The Card, a Story of Adventure in the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett

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