Words / B1

MURCH-uh-nt/ˈmɜːtʃənt/

A merchant buys and sells goods, especially in large amounts. Trader is a close twin; a shopkeeper is smaller and everyday. Historic: merchant navy. High street: city merchants backed Sunday trading.

Meaning

A person or firm that buys and sells goods, especially in large amounts.

Examples

• “City merchants backed the Sunday trading trial on the high street.”
• “A merchant account for card payments is the banking sense, not a Victorian trader.”

Good to know

a merchant. Close: a trader. Smaller: a shopkeeper. High street / history. Countable firms or people.

Near in meaning

trader

New