What does "purchasing" mean?

1. (the act of buying) the act or process of buying something. 2. (a business department) the department in a large company or government that is in charge of buying goods.

How do you use "purchasing"?

Often functions as an attributive noun, as in 'purchasing manager' or 'purchasing department'.

purchasing

US //ˈpɝtʃəsɪŋ// UK //pˈɜːtʃɪsɪŋ// pur·chas·ing

1 the act of buying (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

the act or process of buying something.

the action of acquiring goods or services in exchange for payment. Uncountable in a general sense, though it can be countable when referring to specific instances.

Example

The company is centralizing its purchasing to save money on office supplies.

Example

The sudden increase in online purchasing during the holiday season put significant pressure on the local delivery infrastructure.
- selling
2 a business department (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate Academic Formal Business

the department in a large company or government that is in charge of buying goods.

the formal organizational function or department responsible for the strategic procurement of goods and services. Often used as a modifier before another noun.

Example

You need to send the invoice to the purchasing department for approval.

Example

The purchasing manager negotiated a long-term contract with the primary steel supplier to hedge against future price volatility.

Usage

Often functions as an attributive noun, as in 'purchasing manager' or 'purchasing department'.
- procurement department
- supply chain