sells; sold
ˈsoʊld 
; selling
; selling
1
: to exchange (something) for money
He sold his car.
He buys and remodels houses and then sells them at a profit.
She sold him a watch for $20. = She sold a watch to him for $20.
Stock prices are increasing, so now is a good time to sell.
2
: to make (something) available to be bought
Only a few stores sell that type of equipment.
She sells insurance. [=she has the job of selling insurance to people]
He is selling his car for $1,000. [=he is offering his car for sale at a price of $1,000]
3
: to be able to be bought for a particular price
—+ for or at
Those cookies sell for a dollar apiece.
All items in the store are selling at half price.
4
a
: to be bought by someone or by many people
That house still hasn't sold. [=no one has bought that house]
The houses in that neighborhood aren't selling. [=people aren't buying the houses that are for sale in that neighborhood]
They hope the new version will sell better than the old one. [=they hope that more people will buy the new version]
The dictionary is selling well. [=many people are buying copies of the dictionary]
The newest model just didn't sell. [=very few people bought it]
b
—used to say how many copies of something have been sold
Their first album sold more than a million copies. [=more than a million copies of the album were bought]
5
: to cause people to want to buy (something) : to cause the sale of (something)
His name on the cover sells the book.
Good advertising sells.
6
: to persuade someone to accept or approve of (something or someone)
He had a difficult time selling his theory to other scientists.
You will really have to sell yourself at the interview to get that job.
plural sells
chiefly US
: something that is sold
—used to say that it is easy or difficult to get people to buy or accept something —usually singular
Her new novel was an easy sell. [=her new novel sold well; many people wanted to buy it]
We need to raise taxes, but that's a tough sell. [=it's hard to persuade people to accept a tax increase]
Cite this Entry
“Sell.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/sell. Accessed 16 Apr. 2026.
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