bargain

English

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bargain

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Middle English bargaynen (“to bargain, make a pledge for sale”), from Old French bargaigner (“to bargain”), from Frankish *borganjan (“to borrow, lend”), from Proto-Germanic *burgijaną (“to borrow, lend”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰergʰ- (“to protect, secure”). Akin to Old High German boragēn, borgēn (“to look after, care for”) (German borgen), Old English borgian (“to borrow, lend, pledge”). More at borrow.

Compare French barguigner and Portuguese barganhar.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: bägən, IPA^(key): /ˈbɑːɡən/, /-ɡɪn/
• (General American) enPR: bärgən, IPA^(key): /ˈbɑːɹɡən/

• Audio (GA)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)ɡən, -ɑː(ɹ)ɡɪn
• Hyphenation: bar‧gain

Noun

bargain (plural bargains)

1. An agreement between parties concerning the sale of property; or a contract by which one party binds himself to transfer the right to some property for a consideration, and the other party binds himself to receive the property and pay the consideration.
   • 1883, J. J. S Wharton, Wharton's Law Lexicon:

     A contract is a bargain that is legally binding.

2. An agreement or stipulation; mutual pledge.

   Synonyms: contract, engagement, stipulation

   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     […] And when your honors mean to solemnize
     The bargain of your faith, I do beseech you,
     Even at that time I may be married too.

3. An item purchased for significantly less than the usual, or recommended, price

   Synonym: steal

   Antonym: rip-off

4. A gainful transaction; an advantageous purchase.

   to buy a thing at a bargain

   At that price, it's not just a bargain, it's a steal.

   • 1913, Mrs. [Marie] Belloc Lowndes, chapter I, in The Lodger, London: Methuen, →OCLC; republished in Novels of Mystery: The Lodger; The Story of Ivy; What Really Happened, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green and Co., , , →OCLC, page 0016:

     Thus the red damask curtains which now shut out the fog-laden, drizzling atmosphere of the Marylebone Road, had cost a mere song, and yet they might have been warranted to last another thirty years. A great bargain also had been the excellent Axminster carpet which covered the floor; […].

5. The thing stipulated or purchased.

   Synonym: purchase

   • c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     If he say so, may his pernicious soul Rot half a grain a day! He lies to th' heart. She was too fond of her most filthy bargain.

Derived terms

Descendants

• Sranan Tongo: barki

Translations

Verb

bargain (third-person singular simple present bargains, present participle bargaining, simple past and past participle bargained)

1. (intransitive) To make a bargain; to make a deal or contract for the exchange of property or services; to negotiate

   They had to bargain for a few minutes to get a decent price for the rug.

   • 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):

     So worthless peasants bargain for their wives.
     United we bargain, divided we beg

2. (transitive) To transfer for a consideration; to barter; to trade

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• haggle

Anagrams

• Bagrian, braaing

Middle English

Noun

bargain

1. Alternative form of bargayne

Scottish Gaelic

Noun

bargain m

1. genitive singular of bargan
2. nominative plural of bargan