1
: a sale of property to the highest bidder
2
: the act or process of bidding in some card games
Examples of auction in a Sentence
Noun
She bought the desk at an auction.
He made several bids at the auction.
Verb
They auctioned a similar desk last year.
The house was auctioned last week.
Recent Examples on the Web
Andy Vasoyan, Forbes.com, 24 Apr. 2025
Now, more than 50 years later, the late astronaut’s timepiece has sold at auction for $2.1 million, including fees, according to RR Auction.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Apr. 2025
Jason Lloyd, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2025
The painting was auctioned at the 2023 Beijing Rongbao Autumn Arts Auction for 1.288 million RMB.
—Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 24 Apr. 2025
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Noun
Another new spirit arriving at auction doesn’t usually have industry-wide implications, but Dobel Tequila’s ultra-rare new expression is different.
—Andy Vasoyan, Forbes.com, 24 Apr. 2025
Now, more than 50 years later, the late astronaut’s timepiece has sold at auction for $2.1 million, including fees, according to RR Auction.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Apr. 2025
Verb
The Browns could easily auction it off to the highest bidder and move down again, acquiring more picks in this draft or next year’s draft to help the roster.
—Jason Lloyd, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2025
The painting was auctioned at the 2023 Beijing Rongbao Autumn Arts Auction for 1.288 million RMB.
—Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for auction
Cite this Entry
“Auction.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/auction. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
auction
1 of 2 noun
auc·tion
ˈȯk-shən 
: a sale at which things are sold to those who offer to pay the most
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