bestseller

noun

best·​sell·​er ˈbes(t)-ˈse-lər 

variants or best seller

plural bestsellers or best sellers

: a popular product and especially a book whose sales are among the highest of its class

[Isabel] Allende's new book is spun from the stuff of epic romances: eternal love, lost innocence, distant locales, revolution. In short, all the elements of a sure bestseller.

—Julie K. L. Dam

The Harvard Book Store Café … is not only the obvious choice for the latest best seller but the intelligent break for a shopper's graze.

—Alice Rubenstein Gochman

Two million copies have been sold, and it has been on the New York Times bestseller list for four years.

—Judith Daniels

… the two Fisher-Price bestsellers are the company's Fun with Food [toy] series and the Fisher-Price Fun with Food Kitchen.

—The New Yorker

She knows what the mass market wants—Vanderbilt and Chaps [fragrances] are best sellers—and she has a flair for what appeals to a more specialized market …

—Amy Singer

best-sellerdom

ˈbes(t)-ˈse-lər-dəm 

noun

best-selling

ˈbes(t)-ˈse-liŋ 

adjective

Examples of bestseller in a Sentence

She has written several best sellers.

Recent Examples on the Web

Thirty-eight years ago, the first author’s bestseller The Hero’s Farewell (Oxford) broke new ground describing the challenges of following founders given the shadows of legendary entrepreneurs. —Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 21 Apr. 2026

The actress had not commented on the report and her only Instagram post in April was an update on her memoir becoming a New York Times audio bestseller. —Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 20 Apr. 2026

Benedict is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller as well as a lawyer. —News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Apr. 2026

Cosby’s work has topped bestseller lists and been praised by former President Obama. —Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2026

One of Glow Recipe’s original bestsellers, this oil-free moisturizer uses watermelon extract and plenty of antioxidants in a lightweight gel great for daily use by those with oily skin. —Bestreviews, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2026

Many cookbook publishers insist such topics don’t sell, and while celebrity chefs and the diet du jour still dominate bestseller lists, this past season ushered in a wave of new titles immersed in the cuisines of Somalia, Sudan, Cambodia, Pakistan, and El Salvador, to name a few. —Jamie Feldmar, Saveur, 15 Apr. 2026

Contributor Blake Bakkila put her trust in the Amazon reviews and took these under-$50 bestsellers for a spin. —Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 15 Apr. 2026

Seedo’s turkey sandweesh has become a surprising bestseller — or at least a surprise to me. —Louisa Kung Liu Chu, Chicago Tribune, 14 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for bestseller

• bookseller
• flagellar
• impeller
• lamellar
• micellar
• modeller
• ocellar
• patellar
• propeller
• reseller
• scutellar
• beller

Kids Definition

best-seller

noun

best-sell·​er

ˈbes(t)-ˈsel-ər

: an article (as a book) whose sales are among the highest of its kind

best-selling

-ˈsel-iŋ

adjective