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

• business
• 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

Less than a year after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed legislation that would overhaul Florida’s hemp marketplace, Florida senators are trying again. —Romy Ellenbogen, Miami Herald, 18 Mar. 2025

To truly bring value, B2B marketplaces need to not only make new introductions, but need to build long-term partnerships that fuel business growth for both brands and retailers. —Fairchild Studio, WWD, 18 Mar. 2025

What made this company exceptional in the marketplace? —Steve Booren, The Denver Post, 16 Mar. 2025

The same is true of Ramaswamy, who seems to not realize that whatever revolutionary new drugs and treatments his biotech startups might produce will not simply appear magically in the marketplace ready to take on some of society’s most intractable diseases. —Jeffery Vacante, Hartford Courant, 16 Mar. 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