- the past tense and past participle of sell
- sold on ⇒ slang uncritically attached to or enthusiastic about
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
sell1 /sɛl/USA pronunciation
v., sold/soʊld/USA pronunciation sell•ing, n.
v.
n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026v.
- to transfer (goods or property) (to someone);
to do or perform (services) in exchange for money (for someone): [~ + object]He sold his car.[~ + object + to + object]She sold her car to her sister.[~ + object + object]sold her sister her old car.[no object]He said he wasn't selling; he just wanted to talk to us. - to deal in;
keep or offer for sale:[~ + object]to sell insurance. - to promote or cause the sale of:[~ + object]Packaging sells many products.
- to obtain, total, or achieve sales of:[~ + object]The record sold a million copies.
- to be offered for sale at the price indicated:[~ + at/for + object]This little model sells for $200.
- to be in demand by buyers:[no object]On a rainy day, umbrellas really sell.
- to (cause to) be accepted, esp. generally: [~ + object + to + object]to sell an idea to the public.[no object]Now there's an idea that will really sell!
- to cause or persuade to see the value of: [~ + object]He did a good job of selling himself.[~ + object + on + object]to sell the voters on a candidate.
- to surrender (something, or oneself) improperly for profit or advantage:[~ + object]to sell one's soul for power.
- sell off, to rid oneself of by selling, esp. at reduced prices: [~ + off + object]to sell off last year's designs.[~ + object + off]to sell old furniture off before moving.
- sell out:
- to sell everything completely: [be + sold out]The store is all sold out of beanbag chairs.[no object]The store sold out before we even got there!
- to betray or be disloyal to (one's friend, a cause, etc.): [~ + out + object]He sold out his principles to get elected.[~ + object + out]He sold them out just for his own gain.[no object]He has sold out and will go along with whatever his boss wants.
n. [countable]
- an act or method of selling:a hard sell, or doing anything to get a sale.
- Informal Termsa cheat;
hoax.
- to sell (someone) down the river, [~ + object + down the river] to betray:wound up selling his pals down the river for a shorter sentence.
sold
(sōld),USA pronunciation v.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- pt. and pp. of sell 1.
sell1
(sel),USA pronunciation v., sold, sell•ing, n.
v.t.
v.i.
n.
sell′a•ble, adj.
sell2 (sel),USA pronunciation n., adj., pron. [Scot.]
v.t.
- to transfer (goods) to or render (services) for another in exchange for money;
dispose of to a purchaser for a price:He sold the car to me for $1000. - to deal in;
keep or offer for sale:He sells insurance. This store sells my favorite brand. - to make a sale or offer for sale to:He'll sell me the car for $1000.
- to persuade or induce (someone) to buy something:The salesman sold me on a more expensive model than I wanted.
- to persuade or induce someone to buy (something):The clerk really sold the shoes to me by flattery.
- to make sales of:The hot record sold a million copies this month.
- to cause to be accepted, esp. generally or widely:to sell an idea to the public.
- to cause or persuade to accept;
convince:to sell the voters on a candidate. - to accept a price for or make a profit of (something not a proper object for such action):to sell one's soul for political power.
- to force or exact a price for:The defenders of the fort sold their lives dearly.
- Informal Termsto cheat, betray, or hoax.
v.i.
- to engage in selling something.
- to be on sale.
- to offer something for sale:I like this house—will they sell?
- to be employed to persuade or induce others to buy, as a salesperson or a clerk in a store:One sister is a cashier and the other sells.
- to have a specific price;
be offered for sale at the price indicated (fol. by at or for):Eggs used to sell at sixty cents a dozen. This shirt sells for thirty dollars. - to be in demand by buyers:On a rainy day, umbrellas really sell.
- to win acceptance, approval, or adoption:Here's an idea that'll sell.
- sell off, to sell, esp. at reduced prices, in order to get rid of:The city is selling off a large number of small lots at public auction.
- sell out:
- to dispose of entirely by selling.
- to betray (an associate, one's country, a cause, etc.);
turn traitor:He committed suicide rather than sell out to the enemy.
- sell short. See short (def. 33).
- sell (someone) a bill of goods. See bill of goods (def. 3).
- British Terms sell up, to sell out:She was forced to sell up her entire stock of crystal.
n.
- an act or method of selling.
- Business[Stock Exchange.]a security to be sold.
- Informal Termsa cheat;
hoax.
- bef. 900; Middle English sellen (verb, verbal), Old English sellan origin, originally, to give, hence, give up (someone) to an enemy, betray, exchange for money; cognate with Old Norse selja, Low German sellen, Gothic saljan to give up, sell, origin, originally, to cause to take; akin to Greek heleîn to take
- 1. exchange, vend. See trade.
- 1. buy.
sell2 (sel),USA pronunciation n., adj., pron. [Scot.]
- Scottish Termsself.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
sold /səʊld/ vb
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
sell /sɛl/ vb (sells, selling, sold)
- to dispose of or transfer or be disposed of or transferred to a purchaser in exchange for money or other consideration; put or be on sale
- to deal in (objects, property, etc): he sells used cars for a living
- (transitive) to give up or surrender for a price or reward: to sell one's honour
- to promote or facilitate the sale of (objects, property, etc): publicity sells many products
- to induce or gain acceptance of: to sell an idea
- (intransitive) to be in demand on the market: these dresses sell well in the spring
- (transitive) informal to deceive or cheat
- sell down the river ⇒ informal to betray
- sell oneself ⇒
- to convince someone else of one's potential or worth
- to give up one's moral or spiritual standards, etc
- sell short ⇒
- informal to disparage or belittle
- to sell securities or goods without owning them in anticipation of buying them before delivery at a lower price
'be sold' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
cake
- carry over
- cybersquatting
- go
- net realizable value
- over-the-counter
- pawnbroker
- retail
- seller
- sell in
- stand
- such
- vend
- warranty
- chop shop
- factor
- first-in, first-out
- freshness date
- knockoff
- lockup
- marketable title
- market value
- mass marketing
- move
- packing
- packing plant
- pricer
- pull date
- sale
- sell
- slavery
- strip bond