negotiate

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

Updated on: 19 May 2018

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

—

negotiator

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

—

negotiatory

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

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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

Michigan State and lawyers for 332 victims announced the deal after negotiating privately with the help of a mediator.

— david eggert and ed white, Houston Chronicle, "Michigan State, Larry Nassar victims reach $500M settlement," 16 May 2018
One important reason is that the Medicare statute prohibits Medicare from negotiating prices.

— charles m. silver and david a. hyman, STAT, "Why does Wall Street love Trump’s ineffective drug-price plan?," 14 May 2018
But State Department regulations prevented her from saying more, and most of her colleagues in negotiating the deal had left.

— evan osnos, The New Yorker, "Trump vs. the “Deep State”," 14 May 2018
But, the source said, persuading the state to negotiate with the tribes could be a difficult political task.

— patrick marley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Supreme Court sports betting ruling expected to have no immediate impact in Wisconsin," 14 May 2018
Medicare is the largest purchaser of prescription drugs in the nation, covering 60 million seniors and Americans with disabilities, but it is barred by law from directly negotiating lower prices with drugmakers.

— BostonGlobe.com, "President Trump unveils plan to reduce drug prices," 11 May 2018
But the Health and Human Services Department, which administers Medicare, is prohibited by law from negotiating prices with drug companies.

— jonathan allen /, NBC News, "Trump pleases insurers, angers Democrats with drug-pricing plan," 11 May 2018
The project was overseen by Portland nonprofit Ecotrust, which is now pushing to negotiate a deal with the state.

— hillary borrud, OregonLive.com, "Oregon could claw back $1 million tax credit from failed sawmill," 11 May 2018
The Reds are now reportedly looking to negotiate a deal with former World Cup winner Khedira to be an immediate replacement - as per the Daily Mail.

— SI.com, "Liverpool Keen to Land World Cup Winner as Reds Seek Swift Replacement for Midfield Star," 8 May 2018

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

borrowed from Latin negōtiātus, past participle of negōtiārī "to do business, trade, deal," derivative of negōtium "work, business, difficulty, annoyance," from nec "not" + ōtium "free time, leisure, tranquility," of obscure origin — more at ¹neglect

Note: The sense "to confer in order to arrive at a settlement" is probably based on Middle French negocier or Italian negoziare, which had developed this sense, not belonging to the Latin source, by the mid-16th century.

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1598

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

See Words from the same year