sell
gb/sˈɛl/ us/sˈɛl/
A1
English
~ 500
elad, árul, értékesít, meggyőz, rábeszél, eladás
VERB
A1
1
Usage pattern:
to sell [something] to [someone]
They sell fresh bread at the bakery every morning.
A pékségben minden reggel friss kenyeret árulnak.
The store sells clothes for children and adults.
Az üzlet gyerek- és felnőttruhákat árul.
She decided to sell her old car online.
We sell organic vegetables at the farmers' market.
He sells insurance for a living.
Learner examples
I want to sell my bike.
El akarom adni a biciklimet.
They sell fruit at the shop.
A boltban gyümölcsöt árulnak.
She sells flowers.
We sell books in this store.
He sells milk to the school.
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'sell' with 'sale'. 'Sell' is the verb, while 'sale' is the noun.
Meaning
Exchange goods for money
Collocations
sell products
|sell tickets
|sell a house
|sell online
|sell directly
Synonyms
trade (More general; can include barter without money.)
|
market (Often implies promoting or advertising as part of selling.)
Antonyms
buy (The opposite transaction: receiving goods in exchange for paying money.)
Themes
business
|daily life
|commerce
|finance
|core_vocabulary
Definition
To give something to another person and get money from them.
To give something to someone in return for money.
VERB
B1
2
Usage pattern:
to sell [someone] on [something]
She sold me on the idea of taking a trip to Japan.
Meggyőzött róla, hogy jó ötlet Japánba utazni.
The manager sold the board on his new marketing strategy.
A vezető meggyőzte az igazgatótanácsot az új marketingstratégiájáról.
He sold his team on working overtime by explaining the benefits.
It's hard to sell people on change without clear advantages.
Learner examples
She sold me on the movie.
Meggyőzött róla, hogy érdemes megnézni a filmet.
He sold them on his plan.
Meggyőzte őket a tervéről.
They sold us on the new phone.
He sold her on the trip idea.
Common mistake:
Learners may interpret 'sell someone on something' literally, thinking it always involves money.
Meaning
Persuade about value or benefits
Collocations
sell an idea
|sell a plan
|sell yourself
|sell a proposal
Synonyms
promote (Focuses more on publicizing; may not involve direct persuasion in conversation.)
|
convince (General term for causing someone to believe or agree.)
Antonyms
discourage (To make someone less likely to accept or support something.)
Themes
communication
|business
|core_vocabulary
Definition
To make someone believe that something is good or useful.
To convince someone that something is good, worth buying, or worth supporting.
NOUN
B2
3
eladás
A2
The new product was an easy sell to customers.
Az új terméket könnyű volt eladni a vásárlóknak.
Convincing them was a hard sell, but we managed it.
Nehéz volt meggyőzni őket, de végül sikerült.
That idea will be a tough sell in this market.
Learner examples
It was an easy sell.
Könnyű volt eladni.
The car was a hard sell.
Nehéz volt eladni az autót.
This book will be a good sell.
Common mistake:
Some learners confuse 'sell' (noun) with 'sale'. The noun 'sell' is less common and often informal compared to 'sale'.
Meaning
Act of selling something
Collocations
hard sell
|easy sell
Synonyms
transaction (General term for an exchange; not limited to sales.)
Themes
business
|commerce
|finance
|core_vocabulary
Definition
The act of giving something to a person and getting money from them.
An act or instance of giving something to someone in exchange for money.
Grammar
Dictionary form
sell
IPA
GB/sˈɛl/
US/sˈɛl/
Syllables & stress
sell (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (sell)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: sell
Verb
- Base: sell
- 3rd Person Singular: sells
- Present Participle: selling
- Past: sold
- Past Participle: sold
Word family
Forms
sells
verb
selling
verb
sold
verb
Related words
Negative and opposite forms
unsold
adjective
Advanced or less common
reseller
noun B2
sellable
adjective
Highlights
- Irregular past: sold Verb
- Irregular past participle: sold Verb
Expressions
sell off
1/sˈɛl ˈɔf/
phrasal verb
Sell goods cheaply and quickly
To sell things at a low price so they are gone fast.
Examples
- The store is selling off old stock at half price.
- They decided to sell off their extra equipment.
sell out
1/sˈɛl ˈaʊt/
phrasal verb
Have no stock left to sell
To have no more of something because people bought it all.
Examples
- The tickets sold out within an hour.
- All the bread sold out before noon.
sell up
1/sˈɛl ˈʌp/
phrasal verb
Sell all property or belongings
To sell everything you own, often before moving or ending a business.
Examples
- They sold up and moved abroad.
- The farmer decided to sell up after 40 years.
soft sell
1/sˈɔft sˈɛl/
fixed phrase
Gentle persuasion technique
A way of trying gently to make someone buy or accept something.
Examples
- The ad campaign takes a soft sell approach.
- He prefers the soft sell when talking to clients.
hard sell
1/hˈɑɹd sˈɛl/
fixed phrase
Aggressive persuasion technique
A way of trying very strongly to make someone buy or accept something.
Examples
- The salesman used a hard sell to close the deal.
- The salesman used a hard sell to push the product.
- I don't like the hard sell approach.