1
: a sale of property to the highest bidder
2
: the act or process of bidding in some card games
Examples of auction in a Sentence
Noun
She bought the desk at an auction.
He made several bids at the auction.
Verb
They auctioned a similar desk last year.
The house was auctioned last week.
Recent Examples on the Web
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 6 June 2026
In fact, the Treasury Department has seen a string of weaker bond auctions lately with tepid demand forcing yields to go higher as inflation looks to run higher for longer.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 6 June 2026
Larry Holder, New York Times, 5 June 2026
The current seller is auctioning off the car to raise funds for the nonprofit No Name Necessary.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 4 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for auction
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Noun
Meanwhile, the Buffalo Ghostbusters hosted a special presentation and live auction benefitting the FDNY Foundation, for which the Ghostbusters in Concert National Fall Tour also teamed up with Black Ink to donate a portion of ticket sales.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 6 June 2026
In fact, the Treasury Department has seen a string of weaker bond auctions lately with tepid demand forcing yields to go higher as inflation looks to run higher for longer.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 6 June 2026
Verb
The Knicks, meanwhile, are auctioning off the chance to sit in two seats on Celebrity Row at Madison Square Garden for Game 3 against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday, with proceeds going to charity.
—Larry Holder, New York Times, 5 June 2026
The current seller is auctioning off the car to raise funds for the nonprofit No Name Necessary.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 4 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for auction
Cite this Entry
“Auction.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/auction. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
auction
1 of 2 noun
auc·tion
ˈȯk-shən 
: a sale at which things are sold to those who offer to pay the most
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