fair-trade

1 of 2

verb

fair-traded; fair-trading; fair-trades

transitive verb

: to market (a commodity) in compliance with the provisions of a fair-trade agreement
fair trader noun

fair trade

2 of 2

noun

1
: trade in conformity with a fair-trade agreement
2
: a movement whose goal is to help producers in developing countries to get a fair price for their products so as to reduce poverty, provide for the ethical treatment of workers and farmers, and promote environmentally sustainable practices

Examples of fair-trade in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The new certification is likened to organic or fair trade labels, according to a Bloomberg story. Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 23 Jan. 2024 The deal was eventually approved by fair trade regulator CCI, stock markets NSE and BSE, shareholders and creditors of the company and the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal. Patrick Frater, Variety, 22 Jan. 2024 The business is part of a buying co-op called Cooperative Coffees, a collection of 23 North American roasters who use their buying power to collectively import more than 5 million pounds of equitable, fair trade and organic coffee a year from a dozen countries. Amanda Yeager, Baltimore Sun, 17 Jan. 2024 Sustainability and the use of fair trade cocoa beans are priorities for Lantry, who sources beans from farmers in countries such as Haiti, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Costa Rica, Peru, Bolivia, and Colombia. Roxana Becerril, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Oct. 2023 Plus, 100% of The Citizenry’s products are guaranteed to be fair trade by the World Fair Trade Organization. L. Daniela Alvarez, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fair-trade.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Verb

1947, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1914, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of fair-trade was in 1914

Dictionary Entries Near fair-trade

fair to say

fair-trade

fair trade

Cite this Entry

“Fair-trade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fair-trade. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

fair trade

noun
1
: trade conforming to a fair trade agreement
2
: a movement that aims to help producers in developing countries get a fair price for their products so as to reduce poverty, provide for ethical treatment of workers and farmers, and promote environmentally sustainable practices
fair trade verb

Legal Definition

fair-trade

transitive verb
: to market (a commodity) in compliance with the provisions of a fair-trade agreement
fair trade noun
fair trader noun

More from Merriam-Webster on fair-trade

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!