vendor

American  

[ven-der, ven-dawr] / ˈvɛn dər, vɛnˈdɔr /

noun

• vendors
  plural

1. a person or agency that sells.

2. vending machine.

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vendor British  

/ ˈvɛndɔː, ˈvɛndə /

noun

1. law a person who sells something, esp real property

2. another name for vending machine

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Usage

What is a vendor? A vendor is a person or business that sells something, as in The school lunch really improved after it changed food vendors. A vendor is also a machine that dispenses items after you put money into it. It’s more often called a vending machine. Example: The vendor told me that the box has a scratch, so she’s selling it cheap.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• vendors
  plural

Etymology

Origin of vendor

1585–95; < Anglo-French vendo ( u ) r < Latin venditor. See vend, -or ²

Explanation

If you are a vendor, it means you’re a person selling something, whether it’s hot dogs from a food cart or computer software for a tech company. The word vendor comes from the Latin word vendere, meaning “to sell.” Vendor is a name for people who sell things on the street, such as a hot dog vendor, but it can describe those who sell any kind of goods or services, especially a specialized product. A store at the mall isn't usually called a vendor, but you could use the word to describe the person or group that supplies the store with special products or services.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vendor vendors

Yestin Duran, a 31-year-old beverage vendor, said she feared that "gangsters and robbers can cross over" more easily from Brazil.

From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026

Mine is paid through vendor commissions from the flights, tours and accommodations we booked.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026

Unlike in the past, the department would not run the rental operation, and the city is negotiating with a vendor interested in operating the service, Kim said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Street vendor Maribel Verano, 46, is desperately searching for her missing mother and sister.

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

A candy vendor was barking about sweet, chewy manna that had crystallized on the stalagmites of Thulm.

From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin

The rise in June sales came despite a drag from gasoline stations and fuel vendors, where receipts fell for the first time in four months as prices retreated.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

There were reports of vendors suing LIV over unpaid invoices, and of prize money being paid more slowly than normal - although BBC Sport understands that latter issue has been resolved.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

At one point, the mayor even compared street taco vendors to homeless encampments, with both supposedly disrupting the fabric of a well-run city.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026

Another factor, according to a former Navy operations officer, is that some of the usual local vendors, especially of fresh food, cut back their supplies, fearing that they too would be attacked by Iran.

From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026

Unlike the other alleys, where the vendors had big orb-lit signs and played music to attract customers, the vendors here had no signs at all.

From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat

Related Words

• dealer
• hawker
• merchant
• peddler