a special period or event when a shop sells goods at lower prices than usual
The clothing store is having a huge sale this weekend.
We waited for the holiday sale to buy a new TV.
✦ From Old English sala, borrowed from Old Norse sala, meaning “the act of selling.”
the act of selling something or the transaction in which ownership passes from seller to buyer
The sale of the old farmhouse took nearly a year to complete.
Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. tomorrow.
✦ From Middle English sale, influenced by Old French sale and Latin salus; core meaning related to ‘sell’.
the work of selling goods or services, or the part of a company that handles this
After college, Emma decided to start a career in sales.
The company’s sales team met early to plan the new campaign.
✦ Derived from the plural of sale, but developed a collective meaning in business contexts from the late 19th century.
the total number or value of products or services a company sells during a particular time
Holiday sales rose by 15% compared to last year.
Our online sales now exceed our in-store sales.
✦ Use of the plural form to mean ‘amount sold’ began in business accounting language in the early 20th century.
times when shops reduce prices to encourage people to buy, often referred to as “the sales”
I bought this jacket in the January sales.
People queued outside the store for the Black Friday sales.
✦ The practice of calling discounted periods “the sales” dates back to British retail advertising in the mid-19th century.
