ENGLISH
REFERENCE

merchandise

n. · v.
US //ˈmɝtʃənˌdaɪz// UK //mˈɜːtʃɐndˌaɪz// mer·chan·dise
  1. 1 commercial goods (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    goods or products that are bought and sold in a business.

    goods that are offered for sale; commodities in a commercial context. Uncountable in modern usage.

    Example

    The shop owner checked the new merchandise for any damage before putting it on the shelves.

    Example

    The wholesaler refused to accept the shipment, claiming that the merchandise did not meet the quality standards specified in the contract.

    Usage

    Usually uncountable; 'merchandises' is rare and typically restricted to technical legal or historical contexts.
  2. 2 branded products (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    products like clothes or bags that have the name or logo of a famous band, team, or movie.

    commercial goods branded with an entity such as a sports team, musical act, or fictional franchise. Often shortened to 'merch' in informal speech.

    Example

    Fans waited in a long line to buy official merchandise after the concert.

    Example

    The studio's revenue from licensed merchandise actually exceeded the box office earnings of the film itself.

    Teacher's tip

    While 'merchandise' is the formal term, students will frequently encounter the clipped form 'merch' in casual conversation and social media.
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  1. 3 to promote goods (v.)
    C1 Advanced Technical

    to arrange or advertise products in a way that makes people want to buy them.

    to promote the sale of goods, especially through effective display, packaging, and placement within a retail environment.

    Example

    The supermarket uses bright lights and low shelves to merchandise its fresh fruit.

    Example

    Retailers must carefully merchandise their seasonal inventory to ensure maximum visibility during the peak holiday shopping period.

    Usage

    Can be used transitively (merchandise a product) or intransitively (to merchandise well).
Etymology 1

From Middle English marchaundise (“commerce, trading; buying; business transaction, deal; merchandise, goods, wares; possessions”), from Anglo-Norman marchaundise and Old French marcheandise (modern French marchandise), from Old French marcheant (“seller, vendor”) (ultimately from Latin mercātus (“buying and selling, trade, traffic; market; marketplace”), possibly originally Etruscan) + -ise (suffix forming feminine nouns, often denoting a quality or state). The English word is analysable as merchant + -ise.

Etymology 2

From Middle English marchaundisen (“to engage in commerce, traffic”), from marchaundise (noun) (see etymology 1) + -en (suffix forming the infinitive of verbs).

Word family

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