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auctiona public sale where goods are sold to the highest bidder

Part of speech: NOUN

Definition: a public sale where goods are sold to the highest bidder

Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈɔːkʃən/

Example Sentences

  • My dad accidentally bid on his own laptop at the police auction.
  • The rare baseball card went for $50,000 at the sports memorabilia auction.
  • She nervously raised her paddle at her first art auction.

auction

NOUN

[/ˈɔːkʃən/]

a public sale where goods are sold to the highest bidder

The auction room erupts as bidders raise paddles for the rare painting.
💡 Concept

The auction room erupts as bidders raise paddles for the rare painting.

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🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/ˈɔːkʃən/
🇬🇧 UK/ˈɔːkʃən/

🌳Etymology

Rootauct-
Suffix--ion

Origin

The word derives from Latin 'auctio', which comes from the verb 'augere' meaning 'to increase' or 'to grow'. The practice originated in ancient Rome, where war captives and spoils were systematically sold to the highest bidder through progressive price increases.

Breakdown

Latin 'auctio' (increase, sale) + '-tion' (action, process); the root 'augere' (to increase) reflects the core mechanism of bidding upward in price.

🎵Rhyme

cautionportionortion
caution
portion
ortion

🔗Collocations

online auction
auction house
charity auction
art auction
auction off
sealed bid auction

📝Examples

😄 Fun example

My dad accidentally bid on his own laptop at the police auction.

The rare baseball card went for $50,000 at the sports memorabilia auction.

She nervously raised her paddle at her first art auction.

The charity auction raised over a million dollars for the local hospital.

📚Related Words

Synonyms

salebiddingpublic saletender

Antonyms

purchaseprivate sale

Related

bidderauctioneerhammerlotreserve price

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