as in bargaining
Related Words
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as in negotiation
Related Words
as in negotiating
to talk over or dispute the terms of a purchase
I horse-traded with the painter: I did his tax returns, and he did my kitchen
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of horse trading
AJC.com, 6 Mar. 2026
In discussing these choices, both of which will ding your credit record, try to do a little horse trading.
—Lew Sichelman, Miami Herald, 4 Dec. 2025
Both sides have priorities, and there is horse trading and eventually compromise, at least on some issues.
—Tom Kertscher, jsonline.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
This arrangement, the result of historical horse-trading for Haredi political backing, was unpopular in peacetime.
—Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 11 Mar. 2026
The series of votes also came after top Democrats and the White House engaged in their latest horse-trading.
—Al Weaver, The Hill, 12 Feb. 2026
But turnout has been persistently low, months of horse-trading to form a government are likely to follow, and voters are weary of high levels of corruption.
—Natasha Bracken, semafor.com, 13 Nov. 2025
This horse-trading process lacks any moral code or transparency.
—Paul Vallas, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2025
Noun
As the day wears on, look for horse trading, threats and some old-fashioned political tricks as lawmakers try to push their bills across before the end of business Friday.
—AJC.com, 6 Mar. 2026
In discussing these choices, both of which will ding your credit record, try to do a little horse trading.
—Lew Sichelman, Miami Herald, 4 Dec. 2025
Both sides have priorities, and there is horse trading and eventually compromise, at least on some issues.
—Tom Kertscher, jsonline.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
There was also an unseemly whiff of insider partisan horse-trading here—two Democrats for two Republicans—in a razor-close chamber.
—Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
This arrangement, the result of historical horse-trading for Haredi political backing, was unpopular in peacetime.
—Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 11 Mar. 2026
The series of votes also came after top Democrats and the White House engaged in their latest horse-trading.
—Al Weaver, The Hill, 12 Feb. 2026
But turnout has been persistently low, months of horse-trading to form a government are likely to follow, and voters are weary of high levels of corruption.
—Natasha Bracken, semafor.com, 13 Nov. 2025
This horse-trading process lacks any moral code or transparency.
—Paul Vallas, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for horse trading
Verb
-
Iranian media outlets are portraying the development as a victory for Tehran’s negotiating position, claiming that Iran’s insistence on linking progress in talks with Washington to a ceasefire in Lebanon compelled the United States and Israel to agree to a ceasefire there.—
CNN staff,
CNN Money,
17 Apr. 2026
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Documents entered in court on Thursday show that the man’s lawyers and prosecutors have been negotiating a deal, though the terms and just what Bryant would be admitting to aren’t yet known.—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Isaac Gonzales-Chavac, 23, and Franklin Jair Lopez, 18, were charged with dealing firearms without a license, a federal offense, as part of an undercover operation started by the Daly City police department.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
17 Apr. 2026
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According to investigators, the drug task force received an anonymous tip in November of last year that Covelli was dealing drugs in the city of Wheat Ridge.—
Jennifer McRae,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The two parties have been in a standoff for several weeks now, essentially since mid-March when the writers began bargaining with the major studios on a new film and TV contract.—
Katie Campione,
Deadline,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Both labor groups, plus the police and fire unions, are currently bargaining with city leaders over new multi-year contracts.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
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After weeks of haggling with authorities, Rex Pereira secured three emergency visas to leave the oil tanker where he had been stranded for over a month.—
Mithil Aggarwal,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
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Airports across the country are bracing for another crush of weekend travelers as Congress keeps haggling over how to end the partial government shutdown that has driven mounting TSA staff shortages and the longest security wait times ever.—
Jeanne Bonner,
CNN Money,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
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For those of us interested in governing and not bickering, this is a good thing.—
Gail Slater,
Rolling Stone,
16 Apr. 2026
-
In some states, lawmakers are still bickering over how money should be spent.—
Lisa Jarvis,
Twin Cities,
8 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Horse trading.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/horse%20trading. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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