What does merchandise mean?
Merchandise means goods or products that a business offers for sale, such as clothing, equipment, souvenirs, or promotional items. It is commonly used in retail, advertising, and commerce to refer collectively to what is being sold, without specifying individual products. In this noun use, it is usually uncountable: a business might say that it has new merchandise or that certain merchandise is popular. As a verb, merchandise means to present, promote, or sell products, often by placing them in displays or featuring them in marketing campaigns. The word can sound practical and commercial, and it occasionally carries the implication that goods are being presented in a way intended to attract buyers. Merchandise is distinct from merchandise in the broader sense of trade or commerce, and from a merchandiser, which is a person or company involved in selling or promoting products.
Goods or products offered for sale, especially by a retailer or business.
"The shop displays colorful merchandise near the entrance."
Usually uncountable; 'merchandises' is uncommon.
To sell or promote particular products, especially through displays, advertising, or other marketing activities.
"The company merchandises its products in department stores and online."
Common in retail, advertising, and marketing contexts.
Usually used as an uncountable mass noun. The plural 'merchandises' is possible but uncommon.
"The store's merchandise includes clothing, accessories, and gift items."
Merchandise began as a word for trade itself; the word that named a practice eventually came to name the goods that practice moved.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does merchandise come from?
The word entered English through Old French merchandise, which was derived from Latin mercant-, a form associated with mercari, meaning to trade or deal. Its English sense developed from the goods involved in a trade to the collective products offered for sale. Related English words such as merchant, market, and commerce preserve the same broad Latin trading root.
Related word forms
How merchandise is actually used
The noun is usually treated as an uncountable mass noun, though 'merchandise' can occasionally be used in the plural. The verb is especially common in retail and marketing contexts.
Easily confused with merchandise
Merchandise refers to the goods themselves, whereas a merchandiser is a person or business that sells or promotes merchandise.