sharing economy

noun

Definition of sharing economy

: economic activity that involves individuals buying or selling usually temporary access to goods or services especially as arranged through an online company or organization Arguably the biggest sector of the sharing economy is travel. People are renting their beds to out-of-towners (Airbnb and Couchsurfer), leading them on guided tours (Vayable and CanaryHop) and hosting meals (Voulez Vous Diner and EatWith), sometimes for free but on most sites for a price—though one far below those found at local hotels.— Eliana Dockterman

Examples of sharing economy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But there’s also a brand new idea on a more casual, street-wise, community level that fits right in with today’s shared economy: The Oakland Art Library. — Angela Hill, The Mercury News, "Want to rent art rather than buy? Bay Area has some fun options," 10 July 2019 Those young people ended up building many of the social media and sharing economy platforms that would transform the lives of people of all ages by the end of the first decade of the new millennium. — Kate Eichhorn, WIRED, "Social Media Could Make It Impossible to Grow Up," 8 July 2019 Quiet mode is an apt metaphor for what has become of the sharing economy. — Simone Stolzoff, SFChronicle.com, "Who needs neighbors when there’s an app for everything?," 21 June 2019 In this circular economy, the inhabitants will reuse everything from furniture to children’s clothing and make use of sharing economy services—for instance lending, renting, or bartering goods through the internet or peer communities. — Karen Gunn, National Geographic, "This island is going trash free—by recycling all of its waste," 22 Apr. 2019 Airlines and hotels have had points, miles, and loyalty and rewards programs for decades, and sharing economy companies, like Uber and Lyft, are finally joining the game. — Meredith Carey, Condé Nast Traveler, "Airbnb’s ‘Superguest’ Program: The Benefits We Want to See," 18 Dec. 2018 Renting out an extra room to tourists through Airbnb is like dipping your toes into the scary waters of the sharing economy; buying a home that’s specifically designed to be split up and commodified is more akin to diving in headfirst. — Gaby Del Valle, Vox, "Airbnb will start designing — and selling — homes," 30 Nov. 2018 Increasing eligibility would give more ordinary Americans who participate in the sharing economy the potential to benefit when a private company goes public, Airbnb said. — Aisha Al-muslim And Maureen Farrell, WSJ, "Airbnb Proposes Giving Hosts a Stake in the Company," 21 Sep. 2018 Teslas are also seeing high demand in the sharing economy. — Rani Molla, Recode, "Elon Musk’s summer of bad behavior hasn’t affected Tesla’s sales, but it has hurt its reputation," 10 Oct. 2018

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