negotiate

play

verb ne·go·ti·ate \ ni-ˈgō-shē-ˌāt , nonstandard -sē- \

Updated on: 15 Aug 2017

Definition of negotiate

negotiated; negotiating

intransitive verb

:to confer with another so as to arrive at the settlement of some matter

Teachers are negotiating for higher salaries.

transitive verb

1 a :to deal with (some matter or affair that requires ability for its successful handling) :manage

negotiated his business deals with remarkable skill

b :to arrange for or bring about through conference, discussion, and compromise

negotiate a treaty

2 a :to transfer (something, such as a bill of exchange) to another by delivery or endorsement (see endorse 1d)

b :to convert into cash or the equivalent value

negotiate a check

3 a :to successfully travel along or over

negotiate a turn

b :complete, accomplish

negotiate the trip in two hours

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negotiator

play \ni-ˈgō-shē-ˌā-tər, nonstandard -sē-\ noun

—

negotiatory

play \ni-ˈgō-sh(ē-)ə-ˌtȯr-ē, nonstandard -sē-\ adjective

See negotiate defined for English-language learners

See negotiate defined for kids

negotiate was our Word of the Day on 07/06/2016. Hear the podcast!

Examples of negotiate in a Sentence

The customer wanted to negotiate over the price.
She has good negotiating skills.
We negotiated a fair price.
The driver carefully negotiated the winding road.

Recent Examples of negotiate from the Web

Again, British officials believe the EU’s refusal to waver from the wording of their negotiating mandate, and a narrow interpretation of the supply chain, are blocking progress.

— ian wishart, Bloomberg.com, "Devil in the Detail: Why Brexit Talks Are Making Little Progress," 30 Aug. 2017
Vice President Mike Pence and officials from the Department of Homeland Security have taken the lead in negotiating many of the details of the federal response to Harvey, but Mr. Trump has made a point of emphasizing his involvement in the crisis.

— glenn thrush, New York Times, "Trump, in Texas, Calls Harvey Recovery Response Effort a ‘Real Team’," 29 Aug. 2017
So if your card balance is getting close to 30 percent of your available credit (that could hurt your score), call your issuer and try to negotiate a higher limit.

— Vogue, "The Smart Woman’s Guide to Her Credit Score," 25 Aug. 2017
For context, the role of labor is often to sit across the table and negotiate with corporations and CEOs who are determined to put profits over people.

— thea lee, Cosmopolitan, "Why I Served on Trump’s Manufacturing Council — and Why I Left," 21 Aug. 2017
Qualcomm refuses to grant licenses to rival modem makers, which Apple and others contend furthers its scheme to overcharge for royalties and violates its FRAND promise to negotiate with all comers.

— mike freeman, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Clash of 2 tech titans: What Apple and Qualcomm are really fighting about," 20 Aug. 2017
The main one was that her brother-in-law Ted Kennedy negotiated with Onassis, worth some $500 million, for a huge amount of money to be settled on Jackie, both during her husband’s life and afterward.

— nancy bilyeau, Town & Country, "How Jackie Kennedy Became a Powerful Book Editor After Leaving the White House," 18 Aug. 2017
Nearly two-thirds of the public oppose the president’s negotiating tactics, the survey said.

— phil galewitz, Kaiser Health News, "Americans Eager For Leaders To Cooperate To Make Health Law Work," 11 Aug. 2017
Reuters has seen email discussions of potential road tests being negotiated between the company, which for a brief period this year was named the most profitable car company in America, and the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

— david grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Tesla Working on Self-Driving Semi Trucks Now," 10 Aug. 2017

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

The Controversial History of negotiate

For the first 250 years of its life, negotiate had meanings that hewed pretty closely to its Latin root, negotiari, meaning "to carry on business." Around the middle of the 19th century, though, it developed the meaning "to successfully travel along or over." Although this sense was criticized in the New York Sun in 1906 as a "barbarism creeping into the language," and Henry Fowler's 1926 A Dictionary of Modern English Usage declared that any writer who used it was "literally a barbarian," it has thrived and is now fully established.

Origin and Etymology of negotiate

Latin negotiatus, past participle of negotiari to carry on business, from negotium business, from neg- not + otium leisure — more at negate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1598

See Words from the same year

negotiate Synonyms

Synonyms

arrange, bargain, concert, conclude

Related Words

settle (on or upon); chaffer, deal, dicker, haggle, horse-trade, palter; agree; contract, covenant; argue, debate, discuss, hammer out, hash (over), reason, talk, talk over, work out; renegotiate

Near Antonyms

botch, bungle, foozle, fumble, goof (up), louse up, mess (up), mishandle, muff, scamp

NEGOTIATE Defined for English Language Learners

negotiate

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verb

Definition of negotiate for English Language Learners

: to discuss something formally in order to make an agreement
: to agree on (something) by formally discussing it
: to get over, through, or around (something) successfully

NEGOTIATE Defined for Kids

negotiate

play

verb ne·go·ti·ate \ ni-ˈgō-shē-ˌāt \

Definition of negotiate for Students

negotiated; negotiating

1 :to have a discussion with another in order to settle something

We are willing to negotiate with the enemy for peace.

2 :to arrange for by discussing

I'm trying to negotiate a loan.

3 :to be successful in getting around, through, or over

Keep your hands on the steering wheel to negotiate a turn.

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negotiator

\-ˌā-tər\ noun

Law Dictionary

negotiate

play

verb ne·go·ti·ate \ ni-ˈgō-shē-ˌāt \

legal Definition of negotiate

negotiated; negotiating

intransitive verb

:to confer with another so as to settle some matter

transitive verb

1 :to bring about through conference, discussion, and agreement or compromise

negotiate a contract

2 a :to transfer (as an instrument) to another by delivery or endorsement

b :to convert into cash or the equivalent value

negotiate a check

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negotiation

play \ni-ˌgō-shē-ˈā-shən\ noun

—

negotiator

play \ni-ˈgō-shē-ˌā-tər\ noun

Learn More about negotiate

See words that rhyme with negotiate Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for negotiate Spanish Central: Translation of negotiate Nglish: Translation of negotiate for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of negotiate for Arabic speakers

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negotiate

Definition of negotiate

negotiator

negotiatory

From the M-W Editors

negotiate was our Word of the Day on 07/06/2016. Hear the podcast!

Examples of negotiate in a Sentence

Recent Examples of negotiate from the Web

The Controversial History of negotiate

Origin and Etymology of negotiate

negotiate Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Phrases Related to NEGOTIATE

Related Phrases

NEGOTIATE Defined for English Language Learners

negotiate

Definition of negotiate for English Language Learners

NEGOTIATE Defined for Kids

negotiate

Definition of negotiate for Students

negotiator

Law Dictionary

negotiate

legal Definition of negotiate

negotiation

negotiator

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