buy

The definition of buy means to purchase or to get by exchange.

(verb)

An example of to buy is giving a cashier twenty dollars for two movie tickets.

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See buy in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb bought, buying

  1. to get by paying or agreeing to pay money or some equivalent; purchase
  2. to get as by an exchange: buy victory with human lives
  3. to be the means of purchasing: all that money can buy
  4. to bribe or hire as by bribing
  5. Slang to accept as true, valid, practical, etc.: I can't buy this excuse
  6. Theol., Archaic to redeem

Origin: ME bien < OE bycgan < ? IE base of bow

intransitive verb

  1. to buy something
  2. to buy merchandise as a buyer

noun

  1. the act of buying; a purchase
  2. anything bought or buyable, esp. with reference to its worth as a bargain: a good (or bad) buy
  3. Informal something worth the price; bargain

Related Forms:

See buy in American Heritage Dictionary 4

verb bought bought (bôt), buy·ing, buys
verb, transitive
  1. To acquire in exchange for money or its equivalent; purchase. See Regional Note at boughten.
  2. To be capable of purchasing: “Certainly there are lots of things in life that money won't buy” (Ogden Nash).
  3. To acquire by sacrifice, exchange, or trade: wanted to buy love with gifts.
  4. To bribe: tried to buy a judge.
  5. Informal To accept the truth or feasibility of: The officer didn't buy my lame excuse for speeding.
verb, intransitive
To purchase something; act as a purchaser.
noun
  1. Something bought or for sale; a purchase.
  2. An act of purchasing: a drug buy.
  3. Something that is underpriced; a bargain.
Phrasal Verbs: buy into To acquire a stake or interest in: bought into a risky real estate venture. Informal To believe in, especially wholeheartedly or uncritically: couldn't buy into that brand of conservatism. buy off To bribe (an official, for example) in order to secure improper cooperation or gain exemption from a regulation or legal consequence. buy out To purchase the entire stock, business rights, or interests of. buy up To purchase all that is available of.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English

Origin: , from Old English bycgan

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Related Forms:

  • buyˈa·ble adjective

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