What does purchase mean?
Purchase refers both to the act of buying and to the thing obtained. As a noun, it describes a transaction or acquisition: a person may make a purchase, approve a purchase, or receive a purchase order. As a verb, purchase means to buy something, often implying a deliberate or formal transaction between a buyer and seller. It can also mean to acquire or obtain something, though this sense is less frequent. The word is especially common in business, finance, law, and administration, where it sounds more formal than the everyday verb buy. Related forms include purchaser, meaning the person or organization that buys, and purchasable, meaning able or available to be bought. Purchase is also used in phrases such as purchase order and purchase agreement, both of which emphasize the formal documentation or process surrounding a transaction.
The act of buying something, or the item or service obtained in the transaction.
"The purchase of a new laptop was approved after a lengthy review."
Common in formal, commercial, and legal contexts; in general conversation, a purchase is often simply described as a purchase or a buy.
To buy something, especially through a formal transaction.
"The department purchased a new printer last week."
Often used in business and administrative writing. It can also mean to acquire or obtain, though that meaning is less common.
The plural is used for individual transactions or acquisitions.
"The company recorded several purchases during the financial quarter."
The word purchase preserves an old idea of seeking something out: its ultimate Latin root, quaerere, means “to seek.”
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does purchase come from?
The word entered English in the Middle English period from Anglo-French purchase, a noun meaning the act of seeking or obtaining. The Anglo-French form is generally connected with Vulgar Latin perquirere, formed from Latin per- and quaerere, “to seek.” English developed the modern sense of buying something from that older vocabulary of seeking and obtaining. The root is also reflected in cognates such as acquire, inquire, require, and query.
Related word forms
How purchase is actually used
Purchase is formal and common in commercial, legal, and administrative contexts. In everyday speech, buy is usually more direct and conversational. The verb can also mean to acquire or obtain, though this use is less common.