stock exchange

American  

noun

1. a building or place where stocks and other securities are bought and sold.

2. an association of brokers and dealers in stocks and bonds who meet together and transact business according to fixed rules.

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stock exchange British  

noun

1. Also called: stock market. 

   1. a highly organized market facilitating the purchase and sale of securities and operated by professional stockbrokers and market makers according to fixed rules

   2. a place where securities are regularly traded

   3. ( as modifier )

      a stock-exchange operator

      stock-exchange prices

2. the prices or trading activity of a stock exchange

   the stock exchange fell heavily today

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stock exchange Cultural  

1. A place where stocks, bonds, and other securities are bought and sold.

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Discover More

In the United States, the two largest stock exchanges are the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ. Activity on these two exchanges is usually considered an indication of the state of the economy as a whole.

Etymology

Origin of stock exchange

First recorded in 1765–75

Example Sentences

Take Nasdaq Inc., which runs the techy stock exchange on which SpaceX will actually trade and also has an index for the biggest companies on its exchange.

From Slate • Jun. 5, 2026

According to the city’s stock exchange, 40 companies raised more than US$14 billion via IPOs in the first three months of this year, marking the strongest first-quarter performance since 2021.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 1, 2026

It is currently listed on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange.

From BBC • May 29, 2026

Investors may have been initially skeptical of the strategy, which prompted heavy selling of Stellantis’ shares and a temporary trading halt on the Paris stock exchange.

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

Easy, because the stock exchange guarantees there’ll be a new random number every day.

From "X: A Novel" by Ilyasah Shabazz

Related Words

• exchange