\ ˈtrād
\
\
Definition of trade
(Entry 1 of 3)
b
obsolete
: dealings between persons or groups
2a
: an act or instance of trading : transaction
also
: an exchange of property usually without use of money
b
: a firm's customers : clientele
c
: the group of firms engaged in a business or industry
3a
: an occupation requiring manual or mechanical skill : craft
b
: the business or work in which one engages regularly : occupation
c
: the persons engaged in an occupation, business, or industry
4
: a customary course of action : practice
thy sin's not accidental, but a trade— William Shakespeare
5
: trade wind
—usually used in plural
6
: a publication intended for persons in the entertainment business
—usually used in plural
trade
verb
traded; trading
Definition of trade (Entry 2 of 3)
1
: to give one thing in exchange for another
2a
: to engage in the exchange, purchase, or sale of goods
b
: to make one's purchases : shop
trades at his store
3
: sell sense 3
b
: to engage in frequent buying and selling of (stocks, commodities, etc.) usually in search of quick profits
2
archaic
: to do business with
trade on
: to take often unscrupulous advantage of : exploit
traded on their influence … in securing special favors— T. C. Pease
trade
adjectiveDefinition of trade (Entry 3 of 3)
1
: of, relating to, or used in trade
2a
: intended for or limited to persons in a business or industry
a trade publication trade sales
b
: serving others in the same business rather than the ultimate user or consumer
a trade printing house
3
or less commonly trades
: of, composed of, or representing the trades or trade unions
a trade committee
4
: having a larger softcover format than that of a mass-market paperback and usually sold only in bookstores
trade paperbacks
also
: of or relating to the publishing of such books
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Other Words from trade
Verb
tradable
or less commonly tradeable \
ˈtrā-də-bəl
\ adjective
\ adjective
Examples of trade in a Sentence
Noun
the trade between the two countries
Trade accounts for half of our gross national product.
The Tigers made a few good trades this season and picked up some promising players.
Verb
If you don't like your seat, I'll trade with you.
I traded seats with her halfway through the show.
He was traded to the Yankees.
They traded him to the Broncos.
I traded my pen for a pencil and kept writing.
Their firm specializes in trading bonds.
She mostly trades in stocks.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Why would the Pirates trade a young, controllable switch-hitting outfielder, who hit .302 (169-for-559) with 24 homers and 90 RBI?
—
Paul Hoynes, cleveland, 16 Oct. 2021
The oldest player on the roster is 33-year-old forward Thad Young, obtained from Chicago in the August sign-and-trade deal that sent DeRozan to the Bulls.
—
Jeff Mcdonald, San Antonio Express-News, 16 Oct. 2021
The first trade, a sale for a profit of up to $1,000, came in December 2011, nearly a year after plaintiff AntiCancer Inc. filed suit.
—
Coulter Jones, WSJ, 15 Oct. 2021
Nio and Xpeng trade at 15x forward revenue, while Li Auto trades at 10x.
—
Trefis Team, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2021
That would not likely have posed a problem for Johnson, who sometimes sides with Republicans on issues such as gun safety regulations and a greenhouse gas cap-and-trade plan.
—
oregonlive, 14 Oct. 2021
The cap-and-trade initiative would require vehicle fuel suppliers in participating jurisdictions to buy energy allowances for CO2 emissions.
—
Fred Lucas, Fox News, 13 Oct. 2021
The macroeconomic outlook is more worrisome than new tech developments, like superfast 5G network tech and accompanying trade-in deals offered by telecom carriers, are encouraging.
—
Declan Harty, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2021
The restrictions don't apply to cross-border trade, US citizens and lawful permanent residents, as well as people traveling for medical purposes or to attend school, among others.
—
Priscilla Alvarez, CNN, 12 Oct. 2021
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Robinhood is testing a new feature on its app that would enable users to trade and store cryptocurrency in digital wallets, according to Bloomberg.
—
Fortune, 21 Sep. 2021
The go-to trading app for young investors is now recruiting new customers by touring campuses, giving students who sign up for brokerage accounts using their school email address $15 to trade and entering them into a $20,000 giveaway.
—
Francesca Fontana, WSJ, 18 Sep. 2021
Thrown under the bus, Simmons had little chance of recovering and returning to the Sixers – unless, of course, the Sixers wanted to trade Embiid and keep Simmons.
—
Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY, 31 Aug. 2021
North Korea has sealed its borders to trade and visitors since the pandemic took hold, and most diplomats and international aid groups have left the country because of covid restrictions.
—
Washington Post, 25 Aug. 2021
Research suggests that individual investors who trade frequently and hold unbalanced portfolios generally underperform the market.
—
Edward Chancellor, The New York Review of Books, 19 Aug. 2021
Robinhood has already changed how people trade stocks and who’s doing it.
—
Stan Choe, chicagotribune.com, 29 July 2021
That essentially forces the Packers to trade Rodgers ahead of the 2022 season and use the bounty to jump-start the Jordan Love era.
—
Mark Craig, Star Tribune, 27 July 2021
Clifford did not want to trade Vucevic and start all over again; Weltman did.
—
Mike Bianchi, orlandosentinel.com, 3 July 2021
Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
While the offense had its moments post-trade deadline, including a season-high stretch of 14 straight games scoring four or more runs — their longest span since 15 straight from Aug. 11-26, 2016 — the pitching staff too often crumbled.
—
Meghan Montemurro, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2021
When the Cubs have played well post-trade deadline, Schwindel’s performance has been a key role in that success.
—
Meghan Montemurro, chicagotribune.com, 14 Sep. 2021
Evan Fournier, Boston Shot a sizzling 46.3% on 3s for the Celtics post-trade after six seasons in Orlando.
—
Nat Newell, The Indianapolis Star, 27 July 2021
Despite the Cubs being well under .500, there is optimism the worst is behind them during a rollercoaster season that basically has been divided in two unequal parts — the pre- and post-trade deadline teams.
—
Paul Sullivan, chicagotribune.com, 11 Sep. 2021
After dropping into second place in the AL East for the first time since June 26, the Red Sox are in need of a win on Sunday night against the Rays to stop a post-trade deadline skid.
—
BostonGlobe.com, 1 Aug. 2021
The agency predicts that this year China will return to its pre-trade war status as the largest buyer of U.S. farm goods, swallowing 23% of total U.S. agricultural exports of $164 billion.
—
Fortune, 10 June 2021
The Stars still have three post-trade deadline recalls remaining, and could theoretically use them before the season finale on Monday.
—
Matthew Defranks, Dallas News, 9 May 2021
Because of Hall, who has rejuvenated Krejci, the Bruins were the league’s most productive 5-on-5 team post-trade deadline.
—
BostonGlobe.com, 15 May 2021
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'trade.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Learn More About trade
Statistics for trade
Last Updated
18 Oct 2021
Look-up Popularity
Cite this Entry
“Trade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trade. Accessed 26 Oct. 2021.
Style: MLA
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More Definitions for trade
trade
noun
English Language Learners Definition of trade
(Entry 1 of 2)
: the activity or process of buying, selling, or exchanging goods or services : commerce
: the amount of things or services that are bought and sold : the money made by buying and selling things or services
: the act of exchanging one thing for another
trade
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of trade (Entry 2 of 2)
: to give something to someone and receive something in return : to give something in exchange for something else
: to give (one of your players) to another team in exchange for one of their players
: to stop using (one thing) and start using another
See the full definition for trade in the English Language Learners Dictionary
trade
noun
\ ˈtrād
\
\
Kids Definition of trade
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: the business or work in which a person takes part regularly : occupation
2
: the business of buying and selling items : commerce
3
: an occupation requiring manual or mechanical skill : craft
4
: an act of trading : transaction
5
: the persons working in a business or industry
6
: a firm's customers
trade
verb
traded; trading
Kids Definition of trade (Entry 2 of 2)
1
: to give in exchange for something else
I'll trade my apple for your banana.
2
: to take part in the exchange, purchase, or sale of goods
Our country trades in many parts of the world.
3
: to deal regularly as a customer
Because of bad service, I don't trade there anymore.
trade
nounLegal Definition of trade
(Entry 1 of 3)
1a
: the business or work in which one engages regularly
b
: an occupation requiring manual or mechanical skill
c
: the persons engaged in an occupation
2
: the business of buying and selling or bartering commodities
3
: an act or instance of trading
also
: an exchange of property usually without use of money
trade
verb
traded; trading
Legal Definition of trade (Entry 2 of 3)
1
: to engage in the exchange, purchase, or sale of goods
2
: to give one thing in exchange for another
3
: to engage in selling
1
: to give in exchange for another commodity
also
: to make an exchange of
2
: to engage in frequent buying and selling of (as stocks or commodities) usually in search of quick profits
trade
adjectiveLegal Definition of trade (Entry 3 of 3)
1
: of, relating to, or used in trade or in a particular trade or business
2
also trades
: of, composed of, or representing the trades or labor unions
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Time Traveler for trade
The first known use of trade was in the 15th century
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