auction

noun auc·tion \ ˈȯk-shən \

Updated on: 22 Apr 2018

Definition of auction

1 : a sale of property to the highest bidder

2 : the act or process of bidding in some card games

See auction defined for English-language learners

See auction defined for kids

Examples of auction in a Sentence

She bought the desk at an auction.
He made several bids at the auction.

Recent Examples of auction from the Web

The first sales of art held by the La Salle University Art Museum will take place Wednesday and Thursday at Christie’s auction house in New York City, as scheduled.

— stephan salisbury, Philly.com, "Art works from La Salle museum go on the New York auction block beginning Wednesday," 17 Apr. 2018
Next week, Artcurial, France’s third largest auction house, will sell the contents of the Ritz Hotel, Paris.

— oscar humphries, Vogue, "The Glamorous Objets of the Old Ritz Paris, Now on View (and Soon For Sale)," 13 Apr. 2018
Stranger still, each auction house has placed a different valuation on its image.

— Bloomberg.com, "How Can One Artwork Have Four Very Different Price Tags?," 4 Apr. 2018
In this case, owner Doug Cummings decided to sell his home via a New York auction house, Concierge Auctions, to reach the most buyers, nationally and internationally, and hopefully to achieve a quicker sale.

— hudson sangree, sacbee, "Garden Highway house up for auction at $2.3 million | The Sacramento Bee," 3 Apr. 2018
The auction house initially estimated that the letter was worth $50,000, but the bidding quickly escalated past that amount, finally reaching $174,757.

— timothy b. lee, Ars Technica, "Steve Jobs’ 1973 job application fetches $174,000 at auction," 16 Mar. 2018
The appeal of Artsy to auction houses is clear: larger crowds, not just Old World catalog holders.

— michael shnayerson, Town & Country, "Artsy's Wendi Murdoch Just Wants to Sell You a Painting," 15 Mar. 2018
The auction house is closing an exhibition of the architect’s collages and silk-screens, which opened at New York’s S2 Gallery on February and was scheduled to run through March 29.

— jenny xie, Curbed, "Richard Meier accused of sexual harassment by five women," 14 Mar. 2018
The auction house said the Mandels will use the proceeds from the May 16 sale, announced today, to benefit the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation.

— steven litt, cleveland.com, "Mort and Barbara Mandel set to auction art worth $75M-plus at Sotheby's to benefit charity (photos)," 13 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'auction.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of auction

Latin auction-, auctio, from augēre to increase — more at eke

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1595

See Words from the same year

auction

verb

Definition of auction

auctioned; auctioning play \-sh(ə-)niŋ\

transitive verb

: to sell at auction

auctioned off his library

See auction defined for English-language learners

Examples of auction in a Sentence

They auctioned a similar desk last year.
The house was auctioned last week.

Recent Examples of auction from the Web

Licenses for the mini-casinos would be auctioned off first to current casino operators in Pennsylvania.

— liz navratil, Philly.com, "Pa. House sends final budget bill to Gov. Wolf," 26 Oct. 2017
Every Monday more than 100 sheep and goats, scores of cattle, and between 200 and 500 crates of chickens, rabbits and geese are auctioned off, said Lisa Scirpo, who now manages her family’s operation.

— gregory b. hladky, courant.com, "In Changing Times, the Middlesex Livestock Auction is Still the Place to Buy Farm Animals," 13 Oct. 2017
In April, although the Post was still appealing the decision, the taxman auctioned the paper’s assets.

— The Economist, "Tax authorities are the latest tools of repression in Africa," 30 Sep. 2017
Epicure’s vast selection of wines, valued at $175,000, will be auctioned Sept. 27 in the store and online.

— carlos frías, miamiherald, "Epicure will auction $175,000 worth of wine in the wake of its closing," 26 Sep. 2017
Sue was auctioned in 1997 for $7.6 million to the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, the most ever paid for a dinosaur fossil.

— mike sager, Smithsonian, "Will the Public Ever Get to See the “Dueling Dinosaurs”?," 29 July 2017
Tickets were auctioned off for up to $25,000 for a seat at the highly anticipated fashion show and this year hosted the runway's biggest show to date.

— chrissy rutherford, Harper's BAZAAR, "Everything You Need to Know About the 2014 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show," 10 Dec. 2014
Rainbow Row, the longest cluster of intact pre-Revolutionary row houses in the United States, fronts East Bay, where slaves were auctioned; more people from Africa and the Caribbean arrived in America through Charleston Harbor than anywhere else.

— klara glowczewska, Town & Country, "Why Charleston, South Carolina Is the Hottest Travel Destination In the U.S.," 16 Oct. 2017
The new company either licensed or auctioned off its TV channels, satellite radio station, and digital outlets.

— chris jones, Esquire, "The House of Hugh Hefner," 28 Sep. 2017

First Known Use of auction

1723

AUCTION Defined for English Language Learners

auction

noun

Definition of auction for English Language Learners

: a public sale at which things are sold to the people who offer to pay the most

auction

verb

Definition of auction for English Language Learners

: to sell (something) at an auction

AUCTION Defined for Kids

auction

noun auc·tion \ ˈȯk-shən \

Definition of auction for Students

: a public sale at which things are sold to those who offer to pay the most

auction

verb

Definition of auction for Students

auctioned; auctioning

: to sell at an auction The art was auctioned today.

Law Dictionary

auction

noun auc·tion

legal Definition of auction

: a public sale of property to the highest bidder — see also reserve

Learn More about auction

Spanish Central: Translation of auction Nglish: Translation of auction for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of auction for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about auction

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auction

Definition of auction

Examples of auction in a Sentence

Recent Examples of auction from the Web

Origin and Etymology of auction

auction

Definition of auction

Examples of auction in a Sentence

Recent Examples of auction from the Web

First Known Use of auction

Phrases Related to AUCTION

Related Phrases

AUCTION Defined for English Language Learners

auction

Definition of auction for English Language Learners

auction

Definition of auction for English Language Learners

AUCTION Defined for Kids

auction

Definition of auction for Students

auction

Definition of auction for Students

Law Dictionary

auction

legal Definition of auction

Learn More about auction

Seen and Heard

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