| 释义 |
▪ I. sell, n.1 Now only arch.|sɛl|
Forms: 4–5, 9 selle, 6 scell, 7 cell, 7–8 selly, 7– sell.
[a. F. selle:—L. sella:—prehistoric *sedla f. sed-, sedēre to sit; the Teut. form corresponding (except in declension) occurs in OE. setl settle n.]
†1. A seat, a low stool; a seat of dignity. joint sell = joint-stool. Obs.
1382Wyclif 2 Macc. xiv. 21 To eche sellis [Vulg. sellæ], or smale setis, ben brouȝt forth and putt. c1425Cast. Persev. 1749 in Macro Plays 129 Heyl, set in þyn selle! 1531Rec. St. Mary at Hill (1904) 37 Item, iiij Joyntes scells, at iiij d the pesse. Some xvj d. 1627May Lucan iii. 114 But empty stand those honor'd Sells.
2. A saddle.
c1425Thomas Erceld. 49 Hir selle it was of roelle bone. 1590Spenser F.Q. ii. viii. 31 Yet was the force so furious and so fell, That horse and man it made to reele aside; Nath'lesse the Prince would not forsake his sell. 1600Fairfax Tasso vi. xxxii, Downe from his steed the Christian backward fell; Yet his proud foe so strong and sturdie was That he nor shooke, nor staggered in his cell. 1803Scott Cadyow Castle xxx, From gory selle, and reeling steed, Sprung the fierce horseman with a bound. 1855Bailey Mystic 140 Then to horse; the gallant knighthood lift their ladies to the sells. 1886R. F. Burton Arab. Nts. (abr. ed.) I. 175 He bade one of his pages saddle him his Nubian mare-mule with her padded selle.
▪ II. sell, n.2|sɛl|
[f. sell v.]
1. An act of betraying or giving up to justice.
1838Dickens O. Twist xxvi, I say,..what a time this would be for a sell! I've got Phil Barker here: so drunk, that a boy might take him.
2. slang.
a. A contrivance, fiction, etc., by which a person is ‘sold’: a planned deception, hoax, take-in. Also, something that utterly disappoints high expectations.
1838Actors by Daylight 4 Aug. 179 (heading) Editorial consequence—Specimens of wit—A decided sell. 1853‘C. Bede’ Verdant Green i. vii, Mr. Verdant Green having swallowed this, his friend was thereby enabled not only to use up old ‘sells’, but also to draw largely on his invention for new ones. 1857Gen. P. Thompson Audi Alt. Part. I. ii. 5 The thing is what in the language of the turf is called a sell. 1890R. F. D. Palgrave Cromwell xiv. 298 The Insurrection proved, in vulgar phrase, ‘a thorough sell’. 1898R. Blakeborough Wit, Char., etc. N.R. Yorks. 79 The last sell I heard was sending a lad from one place to another for a bucket of steam.
b. The technique of selling by advertising or persuasive salesmanship; the practice or fact of this. Usu. with qualifying word: cf. hard sell s.v. hard a. 23 a; soft sell s.v. soft a. 29.
1952, etc. [see hard sell s.v. hard a. 23 a]. 1970G. Greer Female Eunuch 11 The main force of their energy filtered away..through the sexual sell of the fifties. 1976Scott & Koski Walk-In (1977) xiii. 81 He was like an encyclopedia salesman moving into the soft, memorized sell.
3. (See quot. 1911.)
1911Webster's Dict., Sell. 2. A stock that should be sold. Stock Exchange Cant. 1981Times 20 July 20/1 Cooke, Lumsden waver between a hold and sell recommendation for Dowty Group. Ibid. 27 July 20/1 Woodside Petroleum is a sell. 1981Sunday Times 2 Aug. 43/6 We rated them a sell ahead of the disappointing figures last month.
4. sell-out. orig. U.S.
a. An agreement or contract corruptly made by a public body, involving sacrifice of public to private interest. Also gen., (one who makes) a sacrifice of principle or betrayal.
1862M. B. Chesnut Diary 6 May in C. V. Woodward M. Chesnut's Civil War (1981) 336 Another sellout to the devil. It is this giving up that kills me. 1883J. Hay Bread-Winners 151 How much did the Captain give you for that sell-out? 1890Advance (Chicago) 1 Feb. 3 The proposed sell-out of the State of North Dakota to the infamous Louisiana Lottery Company. 1906Tom Watson's Mag. Jan. 362 (Cent. Suppl.) The Tariff Act..was an ungodly and unblushing sell-out to the Sugar Trust,..[and to] the greedy manufacturing interests generally. 1940‘G. Orwell’ Jrnl. 24 June in Coll. Essays (1968) II. 354 High-up influences in England are preparing for a similar sell-out [to Pétain's]. 1953Landfall (N.Z.) Dec. 283 This film could have ended with a punch; but this would have been running counter to the sacrosanct Hollywood tradition of the inevitable happy ending. So there is a sell-out. 1959Economist 11 Apr. 134/2 Specially elected members (reference to whom the wilder parts of the audience had greeted with familiar African cries of ‘stooges’, ‘sell-outs’). 1960J. Lehmann I am My Brother 4 A gigantic sell-out to the Nazis. a1974R. Crossman Diaries (1975) I. 182 Then Maurice Edelman made an inflammatory half-hour attack on the Government, charging me and Frank Cousins with every kind of crime, including a sell-out to the Americans. 1980Times 19 Feb. 6 Mr. Robert Mugabe's Zanla guerrillas infiltrated the region..maiming or murdering those who were considered sell-outs.
b. A card game otherwise called auction pitch: cf. pitch n.2 4 b.
c. The disposal of a commodity because of great demand; also, a completely disposable commodity. Hence transf., an event for which all tickets have been sold; the occasion of such an event.
1859N.Y. Herald 11 July 6/5 (Advt.), Our goods shall be sold cheap!! In this great sellout. 1923Variety 11 Oct. 17/4 Business at ‘Give and Take’ at the Adelphi was generally big last week... Wednesday..was a virtual sell-out. 1933Sun (Baltimore) 29 Aug. 8/3 The [actor's] interpretation may not be art, and it may not even be O'Neill, but it may easily be a sellout and it will almost assuredly be entertaining. 1945Ibid. 27 Apr. 10-0/1 On a sharp sell-out of rails and steels after the opening, dealings were relatively heavy. 1945S. Lewis C. Timberlane (1947) xliii. 289, I have four tickets... They're absolutely impossible to get, show is a sell-out, but the agent is a friend of mine. 1950Sport 22–28 Sept. 2/1 The Cup Final..is always a sell-out but crowds at other games are always below maximum. 1962Listener 27 Dec. 1095/1 The shortage of shopping times for working people..causes overcrowding, queuing, poor service and sell⁓outs on Saturday. 1968Globe & Mail (Toronto) 15 Jan. 17/2 A sellout crowd of 75,546 watched..Vince Lombardi's National Football League champions. 1977Time 19 Dec. 41/2 Such delicacies are instant sellouts.
5. sell-off. Stock Exchange (orig. and chiefly U.S.). A sale or disposal of bonds, shares, or commodities, usu. causing a fall in price.
1937Sun (Baltimore) 6 Feb. 19/1 The sell-off was less pronounced than that of the share market and was slower in developing. 1941Ibid. 16 Oct. 21/1 Adverse war news was blamed in most quarters for the selloff in stocks and commodities. 1958Time 8 Dec. 98/3 The sell⁓off did not alarm most market experts. 1981Times 21 May 24/1 The recent sell-off by a major institution has done much to cloud market sentiment.
Add:6. sell-in. Marketing. The sale of goods to retail traders, esp. at wholesale prices, prior to public retailing; wholesale selling. orig. U.S.
1961W. Sansom Last Hours of Sandra Lee vi. 125 It's a good product and a good campaign..but we seem to have jimmied the sell-in somehow. 1972Times 8 May (Japan Suppl.) p. v/4 Britain achieved a sell-in in the shape of a 30 per cent increase in exports to Japan. 1979P. Carey War Crimes in Fat Man in Hist. (1980) 170 They had had a highly successful sell-in of our existing lines of frozen meals. 1985Chain Store Age: Gen. Merchandise Trends LXI. 123/3 The product must be available for sell-in and shipment prior to the movie's release. Retailers often take a wait-and-see attitude on movie product.
▪ III. sell, v.|sɛl|
Pa. tense and pple. sold |səʊld|. Forms: see below.
[A Com. Teut. wk. verb: OE. sęllan, pa. tense sealde, pa. pple. seald, corresponds to OFris. sella to give, sell, OS. sellian to give, pa. pple. gisald (MLG., LG. sellen to sell by retail, huckster; hence in Ger. dialects), OHG. sellen to deliver up, pa. tense salta, pa. pple. kasalt, giselit (MHG. sellen), ON. selja to give up, sell, pa. tense selda, pa. pple. seld (Sw. sälja, Da. sælge to sell), Goth. saljan to offer (sacrifice):—OTeut. *saljan, f. *salā gift, delivery, sale n.
It has been suggested by Osthoff that OTeut. *sal (:—pre-Teut. *sol) may be an ablaut-variant, with causative sense, of *sel- to take (Irish selaim, Gr. ἑλεῖν).
The difference of vowel between the pres. stem and the pa. tense and pple. arises from the fact that the i in OTeut. *saliđō, *saliđo- was lost in W.Ger., and the root-syll. therefore has no umlaut except in the pres. stem. Cf. tell v.
The OE. form (*siellan) syllan (beside the normal sęllan: cf. tęllan tell v.) is difficult to account for, as the breaking before ll otherwise occurs only when the gemination is of OTeut. date. Possibly the sibilant may in some way have affected the following vowel.]
A. Illustration of Inflexional Forms.
1. Present stem. inf. 1 sellan, sillan, syllan, (Northumb. sealla, sella), 1–2 syl(l)e, 2 sillen, 2–3 sullen, (3 seollen), 3 Ormin sellenn, 3–5 selle(n, sulle, 3–7 sel, 4–5 sill(e, 4 Kent. zelle, suylle, 5 syll(e, (sile), seel(l, Promp. Parv. ceele, cellyn, sellyn, 3– sell. Also 1 imp. sele, syle; 3rd pers. pres. ind. 4 Kent. zelþ.
c950Lindisf. Gosp. Luke xi. 7 Ne mæᵹe ic arisa & sealla ðe [c 1000 Ags. Gosp. ibid., & syllan þe, c 1160Hatton Gosp. ibid., & sillen ðe]. c1000Ags. Gosp. Matt. xx. 23 [It] nys me inc to syllanne [c 1160 Hatton Gosp. ibid., to sellenne]. c1000Sylle [See B. 1]. c1200Trin. Coll. Hom. 213 Þe sullere..swereð þat he hit nele lasse selle. c1205Lay. 29057, & we wulleð..to ȝislen sullen þe ure sunen. Ibid. 31053 And he wulle..to ȝisle seollen þe his sune. c1250Sel [see B. 3]. 1340Ayenb. 36 Huanne me zelþ þet þing. Ibid. 138 Þet hi hit moȝe yeue and zelle. 1362Langl. P. Pl. A. iii. 189 And beere heor bras on þi Bac to Caleys to sulle [1377 B. iii. 195 to selle]. 1382Wyclif Gen. xlvii. 22 Thei ben not nedid to sellen [1388 to sille] her possessiouns. c1400Apol. Loll. 113 Þei do uniustly, & silun God & þe peple. 1422Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv. xxvi. 159 He the kyngedome of hewyn sillyth for a lytill price. 1422Sylle [see B. 7 a]. 1574Shell, shyll [see B. 3]. 1649Bp. Reynolds Hosea ii. 77 Judas..at once sels a soul, and a Saviour.
2. pa. tense. (α) 1–2, 4 sealde, 2 sælde, 4 seelde, Kent. zyalde, 5 seeld.
a1000Cædmon's Gen. 857 (Gr.) Wiste forworhte þa he ær wlite sealde. a1175Cott. Hom. 227 Þes cenne god sælde & ȝesette æ. c1315Shoreham Poems i. 1287 He..bet out..Þo þat bouȝte and sealde ine godes hous. 1340Ayenb. 215 He wrek þo þe zyalde and boȝte ine þe temple. c1449Pecock Repr. iii. vi. 309 Thei seelden possessiouns and catel.
(β) 1–2, 3 salde, 3 sald, saald, 6, 9 Sc. sauld.
c950Lindisf. Gosp. John xix. 9 Uutudlice ondsuare ne salde him. c1200Ormin 15960 Þa menn þatt saldenn cullfress þær. a1300Saald [see B. 3]. a1300Cursor M. 3518 Esau his forbirth sald [c 1375 Ibid. (Fairf.) salde]. c1400Ywaine & Gaw. 1703 The ermyte..salde the skinnes that he broght. 1562Winȝet Cert. Tractates Wks. (S.T.S.) I. 6 The Disciplis..sauld thair landis. 1600J. Hamilton Facile Traictise 280 Whair euer the pape sauld indulgencis.
(γ) 3–6 solde, (4 soold), 6 soulde, 7–8 (9 dial.) sould, 4– sold.
a1225Ancr. R. 398 Þet ase ofte ase me euesede him me solde his euesunge. 13..Cursor M. 3550 (Gött.), As a wreche he sold his eritage. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 14 They solde theyr possessyons. 1597Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lxxviii. §7 They soulde their possessions. 1710Prideaux Orig. Tithes iii. 142 The first Christians..sould all, that they had.
(δ) 3–5 selde, 4 sillide, 5 sellid, seld, 6 selled; 9 dial. (see Eng. Dial. Dict.) selled, sell'd, seld; Sc. and north. sell't, sellt, selt.
c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. I. 286 He..selde al þat he hadde. 138.Sillide [see B. 7 a]. c1440Alphabet of Tales 64 Constancius..sellid his hors for xij d of gold. 1451J. Capgrave Life St. Gilbert 77 For he seld hem nowt. 1562Selled [see B. 3].
3. pa. pple. (α) 1 seald, 2 iseald, 3 isæld, iseold, 4 seeld.
a1000Ags. Ps. cxix. [cxx.] 3 (Gr.) Hwæt bið þe ealles seald..yflan tungan? c1175Lamb. Hom. 13 And ȝe beoð iseald eower feonde to prisune. c1205Lay. 11998 Seoððen þis world wes astald & monnen an honde isælde. Ibid. 29459 Heo scolden beon iseolde. 1388Wyclif Isa. xlii. 19 Who is blynd, no but he that is seeld [Vulg. venundatus]?
(β) 3 sald, (saald), isald, 4 salde; Sc. 4–6 sald, 6 salde, 5–9 sauld.
c1205Lay. 29471 And we weoren ut isalde of Anglene londe. a1300Cursor M. 142 How þat ioseph was boght and sald. Ibid. 4241 He was eftursons saald. c1375Ibid. 6755 (Fairf.) He salle be salde. c1470Sald, sauld [see B. 7 c]. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 26 The fowlis..ar sent to the nerrest tounes to be salde.
(γ) 4 i-sold(e, 4–6 solde, (5 swolde), 7 sould, (soald), 4– sold.
1382[see B. 3 e]. 1387[see B. 3]. c1451Pol. Poems (1859) II. 230 Suffolk Normandy hath swolde. 1615R. Cocks Diary (Hakl. Soc.) I. 68 Our pepper..was soald long since. 1618Raleigh in Four-Cent. Eng. Lett. 38, I might elsewhere have sould my shipp and goods.
(δ) 4–5 seld, 5 Promp. Parv. celde; Sc. 6 sellit, 8–9 sell'd, seld, selt; 9 dial. selled. (See E.D.D.)
13..Cursor M. 13182 (Gött.) Bot þis dede was seld ful dere. 1549Sellit [see B. 2]. 1815Scott Guy M. xii, It will be sell'd the morn to the highest bidder.
B. Signification.
I. The simple verb.
†1. trans. To give, in various senses; esp. to hand over (something, esp. food, a gift) voluntarily or in response to a demand or request; to deliver up (a person, esp. a hostage) to the keeping of another; to grant (forgiveness, etc.); also, rarely of an impersonal agent, to yield. (Chiefly OE.)
Beowulf 1161 (Gr.) Byrelas sealdon win of wunderfatum. c950Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. vi. 11 Hlaf userne ofer wistlic sel us todæᵹ. c1000ælfric Exod. vi. 8 (Gr.) Þat land..ic sylle eow to aᵹenne. Ibid. xxii. 29 Sylle me þin forme bearn. a1175Cott. Hom. 223 And se eorðe his awiriȝd on þine weorcum, sylðe þornes and brembles. a120012th Cent. Hom. 132 Ic ȝeafe heom mine milse; & sylle heom forȝefenesse. c1205Lay. 13437 Vortiger heom salde al þat heo wolden. Ibid. 23779 Me salde him an honde enne scaft stronge. c1275Serving Christ 63 in O.E. Misc. 92 Seynt thomas wes biscop & barunes him quolde..For þe dute of þe dom he þet lif solde. a1300Cursor M. 17042 And sua to mak vs ranscuning, for vs him-self he sald.
2. a. To give up (a person) treacherously to his enemies; to betray (a person, a cause, country, etc.).
Chiefly, with mixture of sense 3, to betray for a price or in order to obtain some advantage for oneself. In early use often with reference to the betrayal of Christ by Judas.
c950Lindisf. Gosp. John vi. 71 Cuæð uutedlice iudam..ðes forðon uæs sellend hine [Vulg. traditurus eum]. c1275Passion our Lord 115 in O.E. Misc. 40 He com to þe Gywes..And chepte heom to sullen vre helare. 1375Barbour Bruce v. 610 ‘Tratour’, he said, ‘thou has me sald’. 1549Compl. Scot. 72 Tha deserue as grite reproche as tha hed sellit traisonablye the realme to there enemeis. 1574Hellowes Gueuara's Fam. Ep. (1577) 154 In things of common libertie, he that shall seeme most to serue you, the same is he that most will sell you. 1599Shakes. Hen. V, ii. ii. 10 That he should for a forraigne purse, so sell His Soueraigne's life to death and treachery. 1654tr. Martinius' Conq. China 48 But when the Emperour had perused the Treatie, he presently found his Plenipotentiarian had sold him. 1692R. L'Estrange Fables cxxxii. 123 Those that Sell their Country..for Mony. 1791Burns Such a Parcel of Rogues iii, We're bought and sold for English gold. 1816‘Quiz’ Grand Master ii. 36 Have you e're met a faithless friend, That sold you to effect his end? 1820J. W. Croker Diary 12 Apr. in C. Papers (1884) I. 172 Brougham, it is said, grossly, has sold the Queen. 1895Wolseley in United Serv. Mag. Aug. 475 There can be no moral doubt..that there were traitors in the Turkish ranks, and that the Turkish Army was more or less sold.
b. transf. Of a thing: To betray, ‘give away’, inform against.
1831Ann. Reg., Law Cases (1832) 325/2 Bishop..said to May, ‘It was the blood that sold us’.
3. (The chief current sense.)
a. To give up or hand over (something) to another person for money (or something that is reckoned as money); esp. to dispose of (merchandise, possessions, etc.) to a buyer for a price; to vend. Const. † with, for (the price), † at, to (the buyer). Also, in habitual sense, of a shopkeeper, etc.: To deal in, keep for sale (a particular commodity).
c1000Ags. Gosp. John xii. 5 Hwi ne sealde heo þas sealfe wiþ þrim hundred peneᵹon. c1175Lamb. Hom. 91 And þa..fuleden þam apostles and salden heore ehte and þet feh bitahten þam apostles. c1200Ormin 15557, & he fand i þe temmple þær Well fele menn þatt saldenn Þærinne baþe nowwt & shep. c1250Gen. & Ex. 1495 ‘Broðer’, quad he [sc. Esau], ‘sel me ðo wunes’. a1300Cursor M. 5407 Þai saald þair landes þan for nede. a1330Roland & V. 386 Þe hors was seld..For to hundred schillinges. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VIII. 237 A busshel of corn was i-solde for twelf schillynges þat ȝere. c1440Alphabet of Tales 216 He sellid a noder hors & spendid þe price þer-of. 1562Legh Armory (1597) 77 b, So when they die, their wiues..selled for a little money, their books of visitations. 1574in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 424 The inhabitance..shall not..shell any kynd of flesh..to any of the bucheares. 1595Shakes. John i. i. 153 Yet sell your face for fiue pence and 'tis deere. 1615,1618[see A. 3 γ]. 1625Bacon Ess., Seditions (Arb.) 405 There be but three Things, which one Nation selleth vnto another; The Commoditie as Nature yeeldeth it; The Manufacture; and the Vecture or Carriage. 1728Young Love Fame ii. 202 As pedlars with some hero's head make bold, Illustrious mark! where pins are to be sold. 1732Pope Ep. Bathurst 212 Last, for his Country's love, he sells his Lands. 1821Scott Kenilw. xxii, I bought you some books, madam,..from a lame fellow who sold them in the Market-place. 1883Howells Woman's Reason v. 98 The auctioneer intoned his chant..varied with a quick ‘Sold!’ as..he knocked off this lot or that. Ibid. 106, I won't sell this property at that price. Mod. Many grocers sell wines and spirits.
fig.1742Young Nt. Th. viii. 787 Heav'n sells all pleasure; effort is the price.
b. To dispose of (one's commission in the army) by sale under the purchase system. Now only Hist. Also † to sell one's company, regiment, etc., and absol. (Cf. sell out, 12 c. below.)
1713Swift Jrnl. to Stella 8 Apr., Lieutenant-general Palmer will be obliged to sell his regiment. 1749Fielding Tom Jones i. x, The half-pay officer having quarrelled with his colonel, was by his interest obliged to sell. 1852Thackeray Esmond iii. iv, An old army acquaintance of Colonel Esmond's..had sold his company.
c. causatively. To promote the sale of.
1709Swift Vind. Bickerstaff 8 Or, perhaps, a Name can make an Almanack, as well as it can sell one. 1793Trans. Soc. Arts XI. 8 Every costermonger knows it is the fine fruit which sells the orchard.
d. Comm. In passive with adv.: To have one's stock (well, etc.) disposed of.
1882Daily News 4 Mar., The market will be better later on in the season, and hence makers who are fairly sold are not much inclined to do business for forward delivery. 1898Ibid. 8 Nov. 2/7 Makers have but a small surplus to dispose of as they are well sold.
e. To hand over (a person, a people) into slavery or bondage for a sum of money. In Biblical use (after Heb.) often merely (without reference to a price received), To hand over to the dominion of another, to enslave. Hence fig.
a1000ælfric Gen. xxxvii. 27 Selre ys, þat we hine syllon to ceape Ysmahelitum. 1382Wyclif Ps. civ. [cv.] 17 And into a thral Joseph is sold. 1388Ibid., Joseph was seeld in to a seruaunt. Ibid. Rom. vii. 14 Sothli we witen, for the lawe is spiritual, or goostli; forsoth I am fleischly, sold vndir synne. 1390Gower Conf. I. 215 Mi brother hath ous alle sold To hem of Rome. c1400Mirr. St. Edm. in Hampole's Wks. (Horstm.) I. 221 Whene þou was saulde with syne þan he boghte þe. 1576Gude & Godlie B. 122 My Mother als did eik the same, And I to sin was sald. 1576Fleming Panopl. Epist. 282 Othersome, being as it were bought & sould to that laborious kind of life, spend their days in that allotted torment of toile, as in their natural countrie. 1611Bible 2 Kings xvii. 17 And they..sold themselues to doe euill in the sight of the Lord. 1638Sanderson Serm. (1681) II. 99 Behold for your iniquities have you sold your selves. Ibid. 100 We must..see if we can leave it upon Adam: for did not he sell us many a fair year before we were in rerum naturâ? 1683Col. Rec. Pennsylv. I. 63 He had sould a Servt to Henry Bowman. 1788Cowper Negro's Compl. i, Men from England bought and sold me, Paid my price in paltry gold.
f. to sell his soul, himself, etc., to the devil: to make a contract with the devil ensuring him possession of one's soul after death, as the price of his help in attaining some desired end. Also transf. of one who sacrifices conscience for worldly advantage.
c1570Buggbears v. ii. 72 Tra. Loue youe money so well? Ame. What a question ys that? do not very manye sell their soules & all for monye? 1677A. Horneck Gt. Law Consid. iv. 125 They sell their Souls to the Devil, for 2, 3, or 400 l. 1859Geo. Eliot Lifted Veil i, It is an old story, that men sell themselves to the tempter, and sign a bond with their blood, because it is only to take effect at a distant day.
g. to sell down the river: see river n.1 4 a.
h. To advertise or publish the merits of (a commodity, idea, etc.); to persuade (a person) to accept or buy. Also, to convince (someone) of the worth of (something). (Variously with direct and indirect object.) colloq. (orig. U.S.).
1916Amer. Mag. Mar. 50/1 I'd make my readers want to enlist. I'd ‘sell’ them the army. 1925Publishers' Weekly 5 Dec. 1863 An advertising campaign to sell New York as the printing center of the world. 1931W. G. McAdoo Crowded Years iii. 41, I had to ‘sell’ the idea to men like the elder J. P. Morgan. 1938E. Bowen Death of Heart iii. iii. 362 They forget Major Brutt has come here to get a job... Oh dear, oh dear, I shall never sell him at all. 1942R.A.F. Jrnl. 2 May 30 My work—in horrid modern commercial terms—is to ‘sell’ the R.A.F. to the Army. 1951H. MacInnes Neither Five nor Three i. v. 77 The people of France were sold such ideas as..‘Patriotism is for the rich’. 1956B. Holiday Lady sings Blues (1973) xix. 158 It seemed like a crazy idea, but he sold me. And what's more important, he sold a lot of other people. 1960Guardian 9 Nov. 6/4 We have to sell to the public the idea that being a foster mother is a service..to the community. 1976J. I. M. Stewart Memorial Service iv. 60 It's just no good your trying to sell me those rotten dons.
i. Const. on. To make (someone) enthusiastic about, or convinced of the worth of, something. Freq. pass. colloq. (orig. U.S.).
1918Maclean's Mag. Mar. 52/2 The writer believes it is possible to finally ‘sell’ the Teutons on the advantages of peace as compared with war. 1928Wodehouse Money for Nothing vii. 133 Come to think of it. I'm not too sold on this thing, anyway. 1932E. Wilson Devil take Hindmost x. 112 He rarely mentions Communism, but..he is as much sold on it as any..party member. 1948Manch. Guardian Weekly 9 Dec. 8 He is not selling anybody on America. 1950Newsweek 1 May 45/1, I am going to..sell her on the idea of picking up the option for another 25 years. 1969L. Hellman Unfinished Woman xii. 177 He had been doing his thesis on modern American novelists... I tried hard to sell him on Faulkner and Fitzgerald. 1970J. Earl Tuners & Amplifiers iii. 72 If you are sold on a medium price ceramic cartridge it would pay to look for an amplifier with a 2MΩ ceramic (piezo) input of around 50mV sensitivity. 1978A. Price '44 Vintage iv. 46 I've never been absolutely sold on the classics.
j. refl. use of sense 3 h above.
1938L. Bemelmans Life Class i. v. 73 He told me that what was most important in life was..the ability to ‘sell’ oneself, to call [hotel] guests by their correct names and to remember their faces. 1968Globe & Mail (Toronto) 3 Feb. 11/3 Supersalesmanship is used to sell to adolescents, who must also learn to sell themselves. 1978H. Jobson To die a Little ii. 36 Sales gimmicks are out. We don't need them. The scheme sells itself.
4. a. absol. and intr. (Often in phrase to buy and sell; more rarely to sell and buy.)
c1200Trin. Coll. Hom. 213 Þat is ure alre wune þe biggeð and silleð. 1338R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 287 Þat our merchantz mot go forto bie & selle. 1458Cal. Anc. Rec. Dublin (1889) 300 And he sel or by in maner above sayd. 1596Shakes. Merch. V. i. iii. 36 Iew. I will buy with you, sell with you, talke with you..: but I will not eate with you. 1611Bible Gen. xlii. 6 And hee it was that sold to all the people of the land. a1700Evelyn Diary 5 Feb. 1657, They..were permitted to sell to the friends of their enemies. 1818Cruise Digest (ed. 2) IV. 467 The testator had no power to sell.
b. to sell short: see short adv. 11.
5. to sell (gerundial inf. used predicatively): on sale, offered for sale. Now rare.
a1300Cursor M. 2399 Abram to sell moght find na sede. 1370Robt. Cicyle 243 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1878) 215/1 Wher such cloþ was to selle, Ne ho hit made, couþe noman telle. c1386Chaucer Wife's Prol. 414 Winne whoso may, for al is for to selle. 1426Lydg. De Guil. Pilgr. 21262 Folkys for to telle, That, with-inne, ys wyn to sell. a1500–20Dunbar Poems xxxi. 23 Now quhill thair is gude wyne to sell, He that dois on dry breid virry, I gif him to the Devill. 1896A. E. Housman Shropsh. Lad vi, Buy them, buy them: eve and morn Lovers' ills are all to sell.
6. a. intr. in passive sense. Of a commodity: To find purchasers. to sell for, sell at = to fetch (a price). † made to sell: manufactured or contrived to secure a ready sale without regard to quality.
1606Shakes. Tr. & Cr. i. iii. 360 Let vs (like Merchants) shew our fowlest Wares, And thinke perchance they'l sell. 1616B. Jonson Epigr. iii, To my Book-seller. Thou, that..Call'st a booke good, or bad, as it doth sell, Vse mine so, too. 1656Earl of Monmouth tr. Boccalini's Advts fr. Parnass. i. i. 4 There is no Merchandize in this Ware-House which sels better, then certain Fans. 1711Swift Jrnl. to Stella 24 Sept., Prior's Journey sells still. 1827P. Cunningham Two Yrs. New South Wales (ed. 2) I. xvii. 297, I..seized a musket ‘made to sell’, and sallied out. 1833H. Martineau Brooke Farm v. 63 They sell at about a shilling a dozen. 1851Lytton Not so bad iv. i. 77, I found a bookseller to publish my treatise. It sold well. 1855P. H. Delamotte Pract. Photogr. (ed. 2) 42 In some cameras, ‘made to sell’, no care is taken to adjust this plane. 1860Cassell's Illustr. Family Paper Apr. 300/3 We shall hear fewer complaints of seed, unless it be from those who obtain packets which are only ‘made to sell’. 1896Wells Wheels of Chance i. 7 This, madame,..is selling very well.
b. transf. with personal subj.
1915R. Fry Let. 21 Nov. (1972) II. 391 My show is turning out a great success..as far as attendance goes... Of course I don't sell—I never expected to. 1966C. Achebe in Black Orpheus Mar. 45, I had a Raleigh bicycle, brand new, and everybody called me Jolly Ben. I was selling like hot bread.
7. trans. In various figurative uses.
a. To take money or reward for (something that should be freely bestowed or done); to make subservient to monetary considerations (something which should not be so influenced); to make profit or gain of.
c1175Lamb. Hom. 135 Quatuor modis uenditur elemosina... An fower cunne wise mon sulleð his elmesse. c1200Ormin 15968 He selleþþ Haliȝ Gast forr fe & biggeþþ hellepine. 1390Gower Conf. I. 364 Lich as it was be daies olde, Whan men the Sennes boghte and solde. c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) iii. 10 Þai sell benificez of haly kirk. 1422tr. Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv. 169 Whan Iusticia..hit for Penyes sylle and Sauyth gilti men. 1474Caxton Chesse ii. iii. (1883) 38 And oftetymes they [aduocates and men of lawe] selle as welle theyr scilence as theyr vtterance. 1593Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, iv. i. 41 Therefore, when Merchant-like I sell reuenge, Broke be my sword. a1605Montgomerie Sonn. vi. 9 Quhat justice sauld! vhat pilling of the pure! 1622Fletcher Beggar's Bush ii. iii, Do not your Lawyers Sell all their practice, as your Priests their prayers? 1781Cowper Table-t. 419 When perjury..Sells oaths by tale, and at the lowest price. 1864Tennyson Aylmer's F. 483 But..Her worldly-wise begetters, plagued themselves To sell her.
b. To give up or part with one thing in exchange for another; esp. (after Gen. xxv. 29–34) to barter away (something of value) for (a trifle).
a1225Ancr. R. 148 Hware þuruh me buð þene kinedom of heouene, & sulleð hit for a windes puf of wordes hereword. Ibid. 398 Me sulleð wel luue uor luue. 1422tr. Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv. 159 He..the kyngedom of hewyn Sillyth for a lytill price, lyke as esau didd, that [etc.]. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 18 These maner of people sell paradyse for an apple, with Adam and Eue. 1593Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, iii. i. 92 But I will remedie this geare ere long Or sell my Title for a glorious Graue. 1650B. Discolliminium 48, I will sell my Esquireship to any honest man for a good People-ship. 1785Cowper Task ii. 229 Effeminates..Who sell their laurel for a myrtle wreath, And love when they should fight. 1813Shelley Q. Mab v. 210 Whose applause he sells For the gross blessings of a patriot mob. 1859FitzGerald Omar lxix, [They] Have..sold my Reputation for a Song.
†c. To make an offender ‘pay for’, to inflict vengeance for (an injury). Chiefly qualified by dear, dearly, or an equivalent advb. phrase. to sell (another's act, an offence) dear, to exact a heavy penalty for. to be dear sold or dearly sold, to be attended with great cost. Obs.
a1300Cursor M. 13182 [Herod] þat godman dos wit tresun sla. But þis ded was sald ful dere. c1400Laud Troy Bk. 7864 Ector sclees and Ector felles; His hors takyng dere he selles. c1470Henry Wallace vii. 22 But wald ye do rycht as I wald you ler, This pes to thaim it suld be sald full der. Ibid. ix. 1068 Till Inglismen thar cummyng was sauld full der. 1483Caxton G. de la Tour k ij, Alas how this folysshe enuye..shalle to them be dere sold. a1533Ld. Berners Huon clxii. 630 That aquayntauns shall be derely solde for with myne owne handes I shall sle her.
d. to sell one's life (rarely † death) dear, dearly, etc., to destroy many of one's adversaries before giving up one's life in an encounter; to make the enemy pay dearly for one's death.
1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 4569 Sulle we he sede vure lif dere ar we be ded. Ibid. 4570, 8177. 13.. Guy Warw. 1342 (MS. A) Sir Gij..seyd..‘Dere we schul our deþ selle’. Ibid. (MS. C.), Full deere oure liffis we selle shall. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 139 The French kyng..slewe to the nombre of four hundred, whiche derely sold their lifes. 1603North's Plutarch, Cæs. Aug. (1612) 1163 P. Naso was betrayed by his slaue freed... But he sold his death [Amyot mais il vendit sa mort], for he killed the traytor with his owne hands. 1608D. T[uvill] Ess. Pol. & Mor. 69 With a resolution to sel their liues at as high a rate as possibly they can. 1623Massinger Bondman iii. iii, Better expose Our naked breasts to their keene Swords, and sell Our liues with the most aduantage. 1682Dryden Dk. Guise Epil. 10 For what should hinder Me to sell my Skin, Dear as I cou'd, if once my Hand were in? 1893F. C. Selous Trav. S.E. Africa 191 The brave beast was..doing his utmost to sell his life dearly.
e. refl. to sell oneself: to dispose of one's services for money; to enslave oneself. Also pass.
1771Junius Lett. lii. 265 You have sold yourself to the ministry. 1781Cowper Expost. 375 Hast thou..brought home the fee, To tempt the poor to sell himself to thee? 1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. II. ii. iv, Is Bouillé a traitor then, sold to Austria? 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. vi. II. 64 Money could be..obtained from the court of Versailles; and Sunderland was eager to sell himself to that court.
f. To lose (a match, game) for a bribe. to sell one's back, (Wrestling) to be bribed to allow oneself to be thrown. to sell one's stone, (Curling) ‘to throw away the advantage of a well-placed stone’ (Eng. Dial. Dict.).
1805G. McIndoe Poems & Songs 55 (E.D.D.) Dinna ride Nor sell your stane by playing wide. 1862Lillywhite's Cricket Scores & Biogr. I. 341 This match was said to have been ‘sold’ by the England side. 1880W. Cornw. Gloss. s.v. Faggot, In wrestling, a man who ‘sells his back’ is said ‘to faggot’.
g. Phrase. to sell the pass (see quots.).
1850Ogilvie s.v., To sell the pass, to betray one's countrymen, by giving information to the authorities. (An Irish phrase.) 1865Athenæum 22 July 106/3 An Irish plotter invariably fancies that his companions will ‘sell the pass’ on him. 1897Westm. Gaz. 6 Dec. 7/1 He now warned the men that by accepting the proposal they would be ‘selling the pass’ for all other trades. 1903Daily Chron. 16 Nov. 5/1 He..accepted the settlement, and at once fell from his pre-eminence,..being viewed by his followers..as one who had ‘sold the pass’.
†8. To cry up, praise, recommend (a person) as if a saleable commodity. Obs. rare. [= L. vendere, venditare.]
1540Palsgr. Acolastus G iij b, Who here happye selleth hym selfe .i. who is he here that setteth hym selfe out to the sale, for a fortunate or lucky man? [margin Phra. Beatum sese uenditare.] 1622Sir R. Hawkins Voy. S. Sea 126 Had our Gunner beene the man he was reputed to be, and as the world sould him to me, shee had receiued great hurt by that manner of bourding.
9. slang. To cheat, trick, deceive, take in.
The two earliest examples suggest development from sense 2; the mod. slang use, however, may be partly ellipt. for the older phrase to sell a person a bargain: see bargain n.1 7.
1607B. Jonson Volpone Argt., Volpone, childlesse, rich, faines sick,..Offers his state to hopes of seuerall heyres,..His Parasite receaues Presents of all..Then weaues Other crosse-plots,..New tricks for safety, are sought; They thriue: When, bold, Each tempt's th'other againe, and all are sold. 1733Fielding Quixote in Eng. i. viii, Mayor. I begin to smoke a Plot. I begin to apprehend no opposition, and then we're sold, Neighbour. Voter. I would ride all over the Kingdom for a Candidate if I thought Sir Thomas intended to steal us in this manner. 1849Alb. Smith Pottleton Legacy xv. 123, I've sold them, though! 1852Smedley Lewis Arundel xxiv, You're not going to try and cut out Bellefield by proposing for my cousin Annie, are you? I wish you would, it would sell Bell so beautifully. 1861Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. xxxvii, I'll bet you a sovereign you never see a poacher, and then how sold you will be in the morning. 1893Leland Mem. I. 113 Nor was I ‘selling’ him, for I certainly had read the works.
Phrase.1859Hotten's Slang Dict. s.v., ‘Sold again, and got the money’, a costermonger cries after having successfully deceived somebody.
II. Combined with adverbs.
10. sell away.
a. trans. To dispose of, or dispossess oneself of, by selling, lit. and fig. ? Obs.
c1230Hali Meid. 36 (MS. Bodl.) Wa wurðe þet cheaffeare, for ei hwilinde weole sullen meiðhad awei. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 425 An hondred þowsand were i-take prisoners and i-solde awey, þritty for a peny. 1600Sir R. Boyle in Lismore Papers Ser. ii. (1887) I. 35, I..haue lefte heer..xxxix papers of Sylck..; which..I praie sell awaie to paie your self. 1611Bible Tobit i. 7 The first tenth part of al increase, I gaue to the sonnes of Aaron..another tenth part I sold away. 1639S. Du Verger tr. Camus' Admir. Events 309 Our wary Thyrse shall not sell away his power or mastery.
b. absol. To go on selling.
1878A. L. Perry Elem. Pol. Econ. 543 ‘Never mind’, says England, ‘sell away, and I will make up your loss by a bounty!’
11. sell off. trans. To dispose of by sale; to sell the whole of (one's stock, possessions, etc.).
a1700Evelyn Diary 18 Jan. 1671, He answer'd he [Grinling Gibbons] was yet but a beginner, but would not be sorry to sell off that piece. 1780Mirror No. 106 He..wound up his business, sold off his stock, and purchased an estate in the country. 1816Scott Bl. Dwarf v, You should..set up shop, and sell off all the goods you do not mean to keep for your own use. 1856Reade Never too Late xxxviii. A farmer who was selling off his sheep. 1871Routledge's Ev. Boy's Ann. Mar., Suppl. 2 Selling off! Bargains!
absol.1871R. Ellis Catullus lxxix. 3 Only let all your tribe sell off, and follow, Catullus.
12. sell out.
a. trans. To distribute by sale.
1648Gage West Ind. xii. 42 The Herbes and Salets..which were sold out, brought in a great Rent yeerely. 1705Addison Italy, Switzerl. 506 The Corn being sold out at a much dearer Rate than 'tis bought up.
b. To dispose of (stock, shares, etc.) by sale. Also absol.
1721Lady M. W. Montagu Let. to C'tess Mar (1893) I. 450, I advised him..to sell out the subscription [for South Sea stock]. 1772Foote Nabob ii. (1778) 40 Then sell out till you sink it [sc. stock] two and a half. 1834Marryat P. Simple III. xxiii. 300, I wrote..sending her a power of attorney to him [sc. the agent], to sell out the stock. 1862M. E. Braddon Lady Audley iv, He made arrangements for selling out a couple of hundred pounds worth of consols. 1893Cordingley Guide to Stock Exch. 61 Should a purchaser fail to take up his securities..when the Certificate and Transfer are presented to him, the seller has the right to instruct an official to ‘sell out’ at once by auction.
c. intr. To dispose of one's commission in the army by sale. Now only Hist. (Cf. B. 3 b above.)
1787Minor 13 After some campaigns;.. his creditors allowing him the alternative of rotting in a jail, or selling out. 1860Thackeray Lovel iv. (1861) 133 His regiment was ordered to India, and he sold out.
d. trans. To dispose of the whole of (one's stock, property, etc.) by sale. Also absol., and intr. for pass.
Also colloq. in passive, to have sold one's whole stock of some article.
1796Jane Austen Sense & Sens. xxxiv, In spite of its [sc. an estate's] owner having once been within some thousand pounds of being obliged to sell out at a loss. 1823J. Badcock Dom. Amusem. 155 Three young women went to market with eggs... All three sold out, and at the same rate. 1898Daily News 8 Aug. 2/5 [He] sold out his licensed premises. 1907Daily Chron. 9 Sept. 3/1, I produced two one act operas..and our takings were no more than {pstlg}57. In Germany or Italy the house would have been sold out. 1914Daily Mail 31 Jan. 1/2 My first parcel from you sold out very quickly. 1974M. Birmingham You can help Me ii. 39 The Friday flower stall was rapidly selling out.
e. colloq. (orig. U.S. political slang). trans. and intr. To betray a person or cause for gain (cf. sell-out s.v. sell n.2). Also trans., to betray (a candidate) by secret bargains (Cent. Dict. 1891).
1888Bryce Amer. Commw. III. iv. lxxxiii. 110 When this transfer of the solid vote of a body of agitators is the result of a bargain with the old party which gets the vote, it is called ‘selling out’. 1903G. B. Shaw Man & Superman iii. 78 He has sold out to the parliamentary humbugs and the bourgeoisie. 1946Koestler Thieves in Night 112 The English are going to sell out on us. 1976Survey Winter 86 Barbé called for tactics of disobedience to the colonial administrators and to the traditional chiefs who had ‘sold out’ to the French government.
1857Lawrence (Kansas) Republican 2 July 1 If the Times has not been ‘sold out’ to the Border Ruffian party, it looks very much as if it had been ‘chartered’. 1867Oregon State Jrnl. 19 Jan. 3/1 The writer thinks the officers were ‘badly sold out’. 1936M. Mitchell Gone with Wind ix. 189 Why quibble about the Yankees earning an honest penny selling out the Union? 1940J. B. Priestley Postscripts 45 It let the old hands, the experts,..speak for it, and they sold it out. 1967Times 17 Nov. 8/6 With shouts of ‘They sold us out, the bastards’, the meeting moved to ‘the moment of truth’. 1976‘J. Charlton’ Remington Set xxviii. 141 What happened is, Rog sold us out.
13. sell over. trans.
†a. To sell again. Obs.
b. To transfer by sale. lit. and fig.
1596Danett tr. Comines vii. vii. Note 5. 287 It was sold to this John Galeas, and he sold it ouer to the Florentines. 1837J. H. Newman Par. Serm. (ed. 2) III. xxiii. 372 A man is sold over into bondage to this world.
14. sell up.
a. trans. To dispose of the whole of (a person's stock, goods, etc.) by sale. ? Obs.
c1480Childe of Bristowe 209 in Hazl. E.P.P. (1864) I. 118 Al the catel his fader hade, he sold it up, and money made. 1566Stowe in Three 15th Cent. Chron. (Camden) 140 He sold up his movable goods and went to Rie. 1784R. Bage Barham Downs I. 55 He..had determined to sell all up.
b. To dispose of the whole or a portion of the goods of (an insolvent or bankrupt person) for the benefit of his creditors. Also with the goods as obj.
1825C. M. Westmacott Eng. Spy (1907) I. 149 Being much averse to dunning, I was soon sold up. 1848Thackeray Van. Fair ix, He..would..drink his glass with a tenant and sell him up the next day. Ibid. xviii, The house and furniture of Russell Square were seized and sold up. 1862M. E. Braddon Lady Audley xxviii, I was obliged to sell him up..for he owed me fifteen months' rent.
c. intr. To dispose of (a house, business, etc.) by sale.
1862Manch. Examiner & Times 8 July 6/2 We hed a varra good heawse i' Stanley-street, once; but we hed to sell up an' creep hitherto. 1977E. Dewhurst Curtain Fall xviii. 216 She would be coming home only in order to sell up.
III. 15. Comb. with a n. as sell-soul, sell-truth, one who sells a soul, the truth. nonce-use.
c1680E. Hickeringill Hist. Whiggism Wks. 1716 I. ii. 140 Is it not enough that this Kingdom..should be once in one Age undone by the same kind of Men, the same Sell Truths? 1681― Black Non-Conf. Postscr. (1682) X 2, These little Sell-souls do the feat.
b. sell-by date, a date marked on food packaging to indicate the latest recommended date of sale, esp. for perishable goods; also fig. Cf. pull-date s.v. pull- 2.
[1972Which? Sept. 266/2 Waitrose already have sell by such-and-such a date on dairy produce, bacon,..fish, cakes and crisps{ddd}Marks and Spencer..are going to include sell by in the future.] 1973Which? Mar. 96/1 Most of the date stamps will be ‘Sell by{ddd}’ dates [sic]. 1976Grocer 8 May 72/3 The printing of sell-by dates. 1984Oxford Consumer Autumn 10/2 Perishable foods, like yogurt, which the manufacturer intends you to eat within six weeks of packing, may..be marked with the words ‘Sell by’ followed by the latest recommended date of sale. 1987Daily Tel. 13 Mar. 16/2 (heading) Socialism: the package that's passed its sell-by date.
Add:[B.] [I.] [3.] k. transf. Of a publication or recording: to attain sales of (a specified number of copies).
1860Thackeray Roundabout Papers vi, in Cornh. Mag. Aug. 256 The Cornhill Magazine..having sold nearly a hundred thousand copies. 1938E. Waugh Scoop i. i. 3 His novels sold fifteen thousand copies in their first year. 1948Illustrated 6 Mar. 4/1 American magazines sell millions of copies because of their ‘cheesecake’ pictures. 1958Listener 2 Oct. 498/1 Today a novel needs to sell 5,000 copies for a publisher to break even. 1966Melody Maker 15 Oct. 1 Interest in the new Stones single is much less than in previous records by the group even though it is claimed to have sold more than 250,000. 1980Daily Tel. 21 Aug. 14 The book has sold 10,000 copies since May. It is now reprinting.
▪ IV. sell
obs. f. cell, sill n.1; var. sele n. |