merchant

noun

mer·chant | \ ˈmər-chənt

Definition of merchant

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 : a buyer and seller of commodities for profit : trader

2 : the operator of a retail business : storekeeper

3 : one that is noted for a particular quality or activity : specialist a speed merchant on the base paths

merchant

adjective

Definition of merchant (Entry 2 of 3)

1 : of, relating to, used in, or engaged in commerce The city's reputation, though, is as a merchant city in this nation historically known for its traders.— Peter Theroux

2 : of, relating to, or used in a merchant marine part of the merchant fleet One hundred years ago, a group of 11 senators blocked a bill that would have allowed U.S. merchant ships to arm themselves against German U-boats as World War I raged in Europe.— James Hohmann

merchant

verb

merchanted; merchanting; merchants

Definition of merchant (Entry 3 of 3)

intransitive verb

archaic : to deal or trade as a merchant

transitive verb

: to deal or trade in

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about merchant

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Examples of merchant in a Sentence

Noun

Merchants traveled hundreds of miles to trade in the city. a family of wealthy merchants The town's merchants closed their shops during the parade. Prizes were given by local merchants.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The idea of gross output is more of a business or merchant’s perspective of the economy. — Simon Constable, WSJ, "What Is Gross Output and Intermediate Inputs?," 6 Jan. 2019 Facebook is testing a new feature that allows merchants to more efficiently sell items on a live stream. — Natt Garun, The Verge, "Facebook is testing a shopping mode for live-streamers," 6 Dec. 2018 Chicago tried to ban cashless merchants last year but failed. — Nadra Nittle, Vox, "Why cashless retailers put low-income people at even more of a disadvantage," 30 Nov. 2018 In fact, many of the shrines and temples in the game have merchants selling votives—another historically accurate detail, per Jones. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Those painted sculptures in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey are true to history," 23 Oct. 2018 The first, housed at the Uffizi, focuses on the period between the 15th and 17th centuries, drawing on nearly 150 Islamic objects traded by Florentine merchants. — Meilan Solly, Smithsonian, "Two Florence Museums Are Tracing the City’s 500-Year Connection to Islamic Art," 5 July 2018 Nationwide more than 130 merchants have been arrested since the measures were announced, according to the chief prosecutor's office. — Joshua Goodman, Fox News, "Venezuela merchants face arrest for defying Maduro's reforms," 7 Sep. 2018 Two online merchants told CNN customers may still obtain copies of the holy book from them through private messages, but public listing of the Bible is now impossible on Taobao. — James Griffiths, CNN, "Bibles pulled from online stores as China increases control of religion," 5 Apr. 2018 The city also mailed letters in early November to all businesses licensed to sell tobacco products in its jurisdiction — more than 1,600 merchants in all — notifying them of the proposal and inviting them to a Nov. 16 town hall to discuss the issue. — Peggy O’hare, San Antonio Express-News, "San Antonio to vote on stricter tobacco sales law," 10 Jan. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

So basically merchant refineries should not be the ones that have to purchase these credits or blend the ethanol. — Jacob Weisberg, Slate Magazine, "The Obscure EPA Rule That Brought Down a Trump Adviser," 23 Aug. 2017

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

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Dictionary Entries near merchant

Statistics for merchant

Last Updated

19 Jan 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for merchant

The first known use of merchant was in the 13th century

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More Definitions for merchant

merchant

noun

English Language Learners Definition of merchant

: someone who buys and sells goods especially in large amounts

: the owner or manager of a store

: someone who is known for a particular quality, activity, etc.

See the full definition for merchant in the English Language Learners Dictionary

merchant

noun

mer·chant | \ ˈmər-chənt

Kids Definition of merchant

1 : a person who buys and sells goods especially on a large scale or with foreign countries

2 : storekeeper sense 1

merchant

noun

mer·chant | \ ˈmər-chənt

Legal Definition of merchant

: a person who trades in goods especially of a certain kind and possesses expertise in the area of the goods and the practices of trading in them or who employs others with such expertise a warranty that the goods shall be merchantable is implied in a contract for their sale if the seller is a merchant with respect to goods of that kind — Uniform Commercial Code