BARGAINING Synonyms: 83 Similar and Opposite Words

bargaining 1 of 2

noun

as in negotiation

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bargaining

2 of 2

verb

present participle of bargain

as in negotiating

to talk over or dispute the terms of a purchase they bargained with the car salesman for half an hour before settling on a price

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in agreeing

to come to an arrangement as to a course of action I really hadn't bargained on buying a whole case of Girl Scout cookies, just a couple of boxes

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in arranging

to bring about through discussion and compromise bargained the price of the painting down to a figure that the artist could still live with

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of bargaining

Noun

Sam Carlin, Local 952 union representative, said bargaining with the county has been ongoing for months. — Julie Sharp, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 During the last bargaining session, Eric Johnson, president of the Hialeah Association of Firefighters Local 1102, warned that staffing levels are already thin. — Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 9 Oct. 2026 Unsurprisingly, then, primary elections encourage members of Congress to stake out positions that are further to the left and right and to avoid bargaining with members of the opposite political party. — Scott Warren, Washington Post, 9 Oct. 2026 With greater bargaining power after acquisitions, hospital systems can negotiate higher commercial prices for health care services, which can in turn raise premiums. — Casey B. Mulligan, STAT, 8 Oct. 2026 In early September, SEIU Local 1000 Chief Negotiator Bobby Roy said the union is willing to return to the bargaining table if the state had a meaningful proposal, referencing items beyond telework policies, such as compensation. — Corey Schmidt, Sacbee.com, 8 Oct. 2026 Major League Baseball proposed to shorten the regular season to 154 games from 162 games starting in 2029 and to expand the Division Series to best-of-seven in bargaining with players on Thursday. — Ronald Blum, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026 The union filed an unfair labor practice charge against Casa Bonita in September 2025 after the restaurant cut more than 1,000 hours from workers without bargaining, according to Equity. — Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Denver Post, 6 Oct. 2026 The Whitney Museum union, meanwhile, remains at the bargaining table, with a strike date looming on October 5—three days before member previews begin for the museum’s major Roy Lichtenstein retrospective. — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Verb

Equity and Casa Bonita management have been bargaining since April 2025, with the union meeting with management at least once a month, Hoeschen said. — Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Denver Post, 6 Oct. 2026 Yet one or more of the P5 could inject new names at the last minute, once again leaving the decision to behind-the-scenes bargaining among a few powerful states. — Ian Johnstone, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2026 The California Gig Workers Union hopes to begin bargaining by the end of the year, CalMatters reported. — Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026 Alongside promotions and deadlines, many young women are also privately bargaining with time and their bodies. — Anna Russell, New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2026 This comes several days after Stanford football players created a campus chapter of the College Football Players Association, with the goal of collectively bargaining with the ACC. — Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 2 Aug. 2026 No deployment date has been set for Hyundai’s Korean plants at all, so the union is bargaining pre-emptively, trying to lock in protections before the humanoid robots show up rather than after. — John Koetsier, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026 The ruling also reflected Sotomayor’s reasoning that owners and players were still bargaining in good faith and that salary policies were mandatory subjects of bargaining. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 6 July 2026 If an employer chooses to grant recognition, no election takes place, and the parties begin bargaining a contract that sets standards for wages, working conditions and benefits. — Talia Soglin, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bargaining

Noun

The European Composer and Songwriter Alliance helps fill that gap, uniting national associations to lobby policymakers and guide young composers through contracts and negotiations.

— Ben Croll, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
Trade negotiations between the United States and Mexico have reached an impasse after months of talks between officials about a deal to reduce duties on critical imports from beyond the southern border.

— Kate Nishimura, Footwear News, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of negotiation

Verb

He gets pummeled by waves and rip currents while negotiating the famously difficult shore dive but is soon swimming among brightly colored marine life and undulating kelp forests that filter sunlight from the surface.

— David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
The more balanced market gives home shoppers potentially more leverage in negotiating better terms with sellers, especially if a property has not fetched offers in weeks or months.

— ABC News, ABC News, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of negotiating

Verb

Hori closed the spa and settled his case with New Mexico in 2025, agreeing to pay $350,000 in restitution to customers.

— Monika Evstatieva, NPR, 14 Oct. 2026
But Trump’s broadsides against Ukraine this week, while agreeing a diesel deal with Russia, obscure Washington’s broader plan to end the war, The Washington Post’s David Ignatius reported.

— Brendan Ruberry, semafor.com, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of agreeing

Verb

Rossi interpreted the idea of the piazza quite literally, arranging the service’s pieces like structures around a public square.

— Robb Report, Robb Report, 9 Oct. 2026
In January 2026, the company launched Beyond Borders, an employee network where international staff can help one another navigate the hurdles of settling in, such as finding a doctor, navigating an insurance policy document, or arranging childcare.

— Sam Birchall, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of arranging

Verb

With big-play threats Mosley and Tanook Hines on the field, Maiava looked like an elite Big Ten quarterback dealing the ball in locations only his two ace receivers could catch.

— Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026
But when a traumatic encounter sends Tonya spiraling back into addiction—and back into the dangerous orbit of her drug-dealing ex-husband, Ronny (Alexander)—her fragile progress begins to unravel.

— Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of dealing

Noun

After some spirited haggling at a public hearing, Star City Council members on July 7 approved a development plan for a commercial center on the northeast corner of Highway 44 between North Moyle Avenue and Plummer Road.

— Noah Daly July 15, Idaho Statesman, 15 July 2026
No negotiating, no haggling, no surprises.

— Rancho Santa Fe Review, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 May 2026

Definition of haggling

Noun

Harrington cofounded Elemis in 1990 and led it from launch through the end of 2025, taking the business global and steering it through multiple transactions — including a $900 million sale from private equity to a strategic holding company in 2019.

— Kathryn Hopkins, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026
Ecobank agreed a partnership with China’s payment system to enable transaction settlements in the yuan currency.

— Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 12 Oct. 2026