stock-in-trade
noun
ˌstäk-ən-ˈtrād 
ˈstäk-ən-ˌtrād
1
: the equipment, merchandise, or materials necessary to or used in a trade or business
2
: something that resembles the standard equipment of a tradesman or business
humor was her stock-in-trade as a writer
Examples of stock-in-trade in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The banter between Hamlet and the gravedigger allows for the kind of witty wordplay that is Izzard’s stand-up stock-in-trade.
—
Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2026
Aides and allies proceeded to threaten Denmark with force, using the kind of online hyperbole that is Trump’s stock-in-trade.
—Jonathan Lemire, The Atlantic, 23 Jan. 2026
But cheese is Mosgrove’s stock-in-trade.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 12 Dec. 2025
Paying attention—really paying attention—is their stock-in-trade.
—Richard Renaldi, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
His stock-in-trade is building café racers based on BMW R- and K-series engines that distill each unique design into the most elemental of motorcycles.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 11 June 2025
But, then, folly seems, more than anything, to be Trump’s stock-in-trade.
—Lydia Polgreen, Mercury News, 27 May 2025
Your stock-in-trade as a TV news division is landing the video no one else has.
—Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
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Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2026
Aides and allies proceeded to threaten Denmark with force, using the kind of online hyperbole that is Trump’s stock-in-trade.
—Jonathan Lemire, The Atlantic, 23 Jan. 2026
But cheese is Mosgrove’s stock-in-trade.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 12 Dec. 2025
Paying attention—really paying attention—is their stock-in-trade.
—Richard Renaldi, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
His stock-in-trade is building café racers based on BMW R- and K-series engines that distill each unique design into the most elemental of motorcycles.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 11 June 2025
But, then, folly seems, more than anything, to be Trump’s stock-in-trade.
—Lydia Polgreen, Mercury News, 27 May 2025
Your stock-in-trade as a TV news division is landing the video no one else has.
—Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Stock-in-trade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stock-in-trade. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.
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