marketplace

noun

mar·​ket·​place ˈmär-kət-ˌplās 

1

a

: an open square or place in a town where markets or public sales are held

b

: market

the marketplace is the interpreter of supply and demand

2

: the world of trade or economic activity : the everyday world

3

: a sphere in which intangible values compete for acceptance

the marketplace of ideas

Synonyms

• commerce
• trade
• traffic

Examples of marketplace in a Sentence

Their products must compete in the marketplace.

The company has struggled to survive in a rapidly changing marketplace.

Recent Examples on the Web

Without action from Congress, insurance premiums for people who buy coverage via the Affordable Care Act marketplace are poised to more than double for the average enrollee in 2026, according to research from KFF, a nonpartisan health policy research group. —Greg Iacurci,kate Dore, Cfp®, Ea, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2025

Last year, the organization recycled more than 80 percent of packaging materials that entered the marketplace, including paper, cardboard, metal and glass. —Jeff Young, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025

There are 24 million Americans, roughly, who use these marketplaces. —Steve Inskeep, NPR, 3 Oct. 2025

The average premium of a Covered California member in Sacramento is $166 per month, according to the marketplace. —Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 3 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for marketplace

• aerospace
• anatase
• anyplace
• commonplace
• cyberspace
• database
• diabase
• diastase
• dnase
• elastase
• fireplace
• hyperspace

Kids Definition

marketplace

noun

mar·​ket·​place ˈmär-kət-ˌplās 

1

: an open square or place in a town where markets are held

2

: the world of trade

Legal Definition

marketplace

noun

mar·​ket·​place ˈmär-kət-ˌplās 

: the economic system through which different companies compete with each other to sell their products