peddle

verb

ped·​dle ˈpe-dᵊl 

peddled; peddling ˈped-liŋ 

ˈpe-dᵊl-iŋ

intransitive verb

1

: to travel about with wares for sale

broadly : sell

peddling without a license

2

: to be busy with trifles : piddle

transitive verb

1

: to sell or offer for sale from place to place : hawk

broadly : sell

They peddled fruits and vegetables from a truck on the side of the road.

2

: to deal out or seek to disseminate

peddling personal advice

—G. F. Kennan

3

: to offer or promote as valuable

peddled snake oils and miracle lotions

Synonyms

• hawk

Examples of peddle in a Sentence

They peddled fruits and vegetables out of their truck on the side of the road.

He peddled his idea for a new movie to every executive in Hollywood.

The mayor's aides tried to peddle his innocence to reporters.

Recent Examples on the Web

The skincare trend, which a lot of us first came across when Nara Smith used it as the basis for her homemade moisturizer and which has since been peddled by reams of skinfluencers on TikTok, apparently does wonders for the skin. —Daisy Jones, Vogue, 13 Dec. 2024

The Austrian capital sees its many public spaces play host to stalls and vendors peddling all manner of warm treats and artisanal crafts that are sure to get anyone—whether local or traveler—into the holiday spirit. —Matt Ortile, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Dec. 2024

Behind bars is where repetitive criminals belong, not on the street stealing merchants’ goods and their customers’ cars, and peddling poison to kids. —George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2024

Some might suggest that peddling ideas of heroic viticulture is akin to marketing gamesmanship, that the consumer is forced to foot the bill for wines produced too far from the tenets of entrepreneurship and economies of scale. —Paul Caputo, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from peddler, from Middle English pedlere, alteration of pedder peddler

First Known Use

1532, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing peddle

• peddle one's wares

Kids Definition

peddle

verb

ped·​dle ˈped-ᵊl 

peddled; peddling -liŋ 

-ᵊl-iŋ

1

: to travel about especially from house to house with goods for sale

2

: to sell from place to place usually in small quantities

3

: to present (something) in a manner that is intended to convince others of its value

peddled her opinion to her friends

peddler noun

also pedlar

ˈped-lər