sell

sell
[[t]se̱l[/t]]
♦
sells, selling, sold
1) VERB If you sell something that you own, you let someone have it in return for money.

[V n] I sold everything I owned except for my car and my books...

[V n to n] His heir sold the painting to the London art dealer Agnews...

[V n for n] The directors sold the business for ₤14.8 million...

It's not a very good time to sell at the moment. [Also V n n, V to n]

2) VERB If a shop sells a particular thing, it is available for people to buy there.

[V n] It sells everything from hair ribbons to oriental rugs...

[V n] Bean sprouts are also sold in cans. [Also V n n]

3) VERB If something sells for a particular price, that price is paid for it.

[V for/at n] Unmodernised property can sell for up to 40 per cent of its modernised market value.

[V for/at n] ... grain sells at 10 times usual prices.

4) VERB If something sells, it is bought by the public, usually in fairly large quantities.

Even if this album doesn't sell and the critics don't like it, we wouldn't ever change...

[V adv] The company believes the products will sell well in the run-up to Christmas.

5) VERB Something that sells a product makes people want to buy the product.

[V n] It is only the sensational that sells news magazines.

...car manufacturers' long-held maxim that safety doesn't sell.

6) VERB If you sell someone an idea or proposal, or sell someone on an idea, you convince them that it is a good one.

[V n n] She tried to sell me the idea of buying my own paper shredder...

[V n to n] She is hoping she can sell the idea to clients...

[V n on n] An employee sold him on the notion that cable was the medium of the future...

[V-ed] You know, I wasn't sold on this trip in the beginning.

7) PHRASE: V and N inflect If someone sells their body, they have sex for money.

85 per cent said they would rather not sell their bodies for a living.

8) PHRASE: V inflects If someone sells you down the river, they betray you for some personal profit or advantage.

He has been sold down the river by the people who were supposed to protect him.

9) PHRASE: V inflects If you sell someone short, you do not point out their good qualities as much as you should or do as much for them as you should.

They need to improve their image - they are selling themselves short...

Selling their fans short in such a shabby way is not acceptable.

10) PHRASE: V and N inflect (disapproval) If you talk about someone selling their soul in order to get something, you are criticizing them for abandoning their principles.

...a man who would sell his soul for political viability.

11) to sell like hot cakes → see cake
Phrasal Verbs:

English dictionary. 2008.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • sellənmə — «Sellənmək»dən f. is …   Azərbaycan dilinin izahlı lüğəti

  • şellənmə — «Şellənmək»dən f. is …   Azərbaycan dilinin izahlı lüğəti

  • sell — W1S1 [sel] v past tense and past participle sold [səuld US sould] ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 1¦(give something for money)¦ 2¦(make something available)¦ 3¦(make somebody want something)¦ 4¦(be bought)¦ 5 sell like hot cakes 6¦(idea/plan)¦ 7 sell yourself 8 sell… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Sell — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Brian Sell (* 1978), US amerikanischer Leichtathlet Christian Sell (1831–1883), deutscher Maler Colin Sell (* 1948), britischer Pianist Eric Sell (* 1983), namibischer Musiker Friedrich L. Sell (* 1954),… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • sell — [sel] vt. sold, selling [ME sellen < OE sellan, to give, offer, akin to Goth saljan, to offer (sacrifice): caus. formation in sense “to cause to take” < IE base * sel , to take, grasp > SALE, Gr helein, to take] 1. to give up, deliver,… …   English World dictionary

  • sell on — To sell (what one has bought) to someone else • • • Main Entry: ↑sell * * * ˌsell ˈon [transitive] [present tense I/you/we/they sell on he/she/it sells o …   Useful english dictionary

  • sell — ► VERB (past and past part. sold) 1) hand over in exchange for money. 2) deal in (goods or property). 3) (of goods) attain sales. 4) (sell out) sell all of one s stock of something. 5) (sell up) sell all of one s proper …   English terms dictionary

  • sell — vb sold, sell·ing vt 1: to transfer ownership of by sale compare barter, convey, give 2: to offer for sale …   Law dictionary

  • sell — O.E. sellan to give, from P.Gmc. *saljanan (Cf. O.N. selja to hand over, deliver, sell; O.Fris. sella, O.H.G. sellen to give, hand over, sell; Goth. saljan to offer a sacrifice ), perhaps a causative form of the root of O.E. sala sale. One of the …   Etymology dictionary

  • Sell — (s[e^]l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Sold} (s[=o]ld); p. pr. & vb. n. {Selling}.] [OE. sellen, sillen, AS. sellan, syllan, to give, to deliver; akin to OS. sellian, OFries. sella, OHG. sellen, Icel. selja to hand over, to sell, Sw. s[ a]lja to sell,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Sell — (s[e^]l), v. i. 1. To practice selling commodities. [1913 Webster] I will buy with you, sell with you; . . . but I will not eat with you. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. To be sold; as, corn sells at a good price. [1913 Webster] {To sell out}, to sell… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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