What does "purchase" mean?
The acquisition of title to, or property in, anything for a price; buying for money or its equivalent.
Purchase
/ˈpɝ.t͡ʃəs/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The acquisition of title to, or property in, anything for a price; buying for money or its equivalent.
- Grammar: purchase is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: achieve, acquire, acquire, acquiring.
- Useful contrasts: commercial lease, hackneyed, auction.
- Usage evidence: We will purchase a new car next week.
How to use "purchase"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "purchase" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "purchase" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "purchase" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "purchase" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "purchase" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "achieve" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "purchase", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The acquisition of title to, or property in, anything for a price; buying for money or its equivalent. countable, uncountable
"They offer a free hamburger with the purchase of a drink."
- 2 the acquisition of something for payment wordnet
- 3 That which is obtained for a price in money or its equivalent. countable, uncountable
"He was pleased with his latest purchase."
- 4 a means of exerting influence or gaining advantage wordnet
- 5 That which is obtained, got or acquired, in any manner, honestly or dishonestly; property; possession; acquisition. countable, uncountable
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 the mechanical advantage gained by being in a position to use a lever wordnet
- 7 The act or process of seeking and obtaining something (e.g. property, etc.) countable, obsolete, uncountable
"I'll […] get meat to save thee, / Or lose my life i’ th’ purchase."
- 8 something acquired by purchase wordnet
- 9 A price paid for a house or estate, etc. equal to the amount of the rent or income during the stated number of years. countable, uncountable
"Suppose a freehold house to be worth 20 years’ purchase […]"
- 10 Any mechanical hold or advantage, applied to the raising or removing of heavy bodies, as by a lever, a tackle or capstan. also, figuratively, uncountable
"It is hard to get purchase on a nail without a pry bar or hammer."
- 11 The apparatus, tackle or device by which such mechanical advantage is gained and (in nautical terminology) the ratio of such a device, like a pulley, or block and tackle. countable, uncountable
"He describes the operation thus: "The heavy ram employed to impart the finishing strokes, hoisted up with double purchase and snail's pace to the summit of the Piling Engine, and then falling down like a thunderbolt on the head of the devoted timber, driving it perhaps a single half inch in to the stratum below, is well calculated to put to the test the virtue of patience, while it illustrates the old adage of—slow and sure.""
- 12 The amount of hold one has from an individual foothold or ledge. uncountable
"At first, he was climbing down, testing for purchase with his feet. But soon, as the entire section of ground rotated, he was lifted into the air, and up and down flipped around."
- 13 Acquisition of lands or tenements by means other than descent or inheritance, namely, by one's own act or agreement. countable, dated, uncountable
"The difference […]between the acquisition of an estate by descent and by purchase"
Verb
- 1 To buy, obtain by payment of a price in money or its equivalent.
"to purchase land, to purchase a house"
- 2 obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction wordnet
- 3 To pursue and obtain; to acquire by seeking; to gain, obtain, or acquire.
"that loves the thing he cannot purchase"
- 4 To obtain by any outlay, as of labor, danger, or sacrifice, etc.
"to purchase favor with flattery"
- 5 To expiate by a fine or forfeit.
"Not tears nor prayers shall purchase out abuses."
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 To apply to (anything) a device for obtaining a mechanical advantage; to get a purchase upon, or apply a purchase to; to raise or move by mechanical means.
"to purchase a cannon"
- 7 To put forth effort to obtain anything; to strive; to exert oneself.
"1523–1525, John Bourchier, 2nd Baron Berners, Froissart's Chronicles Duke John of Brabant purchased greatly that the Earl of Flanders should have his daughter in marriage."
- 8 To constitute the buying power for a purchase, have a trading value.
"Many aristocratic refugees' portable treasures purchased their safe passage and comfortable exile during the revolution."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
- 2 A hamlet in Harrison, New York.
Example
"We will purchase a new car next week."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "purchase"?
Common synonyms include: achieve, acquire, acquire, acquiring, acquisition, acquisition.
How do you use "purchase" in a sentence?
We will purchase a new car next week.
How do you pronounce "purchase"?
Pronounced /ˈpɝ.t͡ʃəs/.
Etymology
From Middle English purchasen, from Anglo-Norman purchacer (“seek to obtain”) from pur- (from Latin pro-) + chac(i)er (“to chase, pursue”). Compare Old French porchacier (“to follow, to chase”), which has given French pourchasser (“to chase without relent”).