# merchant

Pronunciation: say "MUR-chuhnt" US /ˈmɝt͡ʃənt/, UK /ˈmɜːtʃənt/

## Noun

1. A person who buys and sells commodities in order to make a profit.
   - Simple: A person who buys and sells goods to make money.
   - _The wool merchant shipped bales of cloth across the channel each spring._
   - _Medieval merchants formed guilds to protect their trade routes._
2. The owner or operator of a retail business that sells goods directly to customers.
   - Simple: A person who owns or runs a store.
   - _The merchant restocked her shelves before the busy weekend._
   - _Online merchants must process returns and refunds quickly._
3. A person noted for a particular kind of activity or behavior, named by the preceding word and usually mentioned with disapproval. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: A person known for doing something a lot, usually said in a mean way.
   - _He's a real panic merchant, sure that every small problem is a disaster._
   - _The tabloid relied on rumor merchants to dig up celebrity scandals._
4. A vessel used for carrying goods in trade; a merchantman.
   - Simple: A ship used to carry goods for trade.
   - _A heavily laden merchant rounded the cape under full sail._
   - _The convoy of merchants sailed under the protection of two warships._

## Verb

5. Living in a region, to buy goods from a non-resident and resell them to another non-resident.
   - Simple: To buy goods from outsiders and sell them to other outsiders for profit.
   - _Coastal families merchant silk, buying it from foreign crews and reselling to inland nobles._
   - _He grew rich by merchanting goods he never produced himself._

## Noun

6. The ship's officer responsible for the cargo and its commercial dealings; a supercargo. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: An officer on a ship who is in charge of the cargo and its sale.

## Origin

This word comes from Middle English marchaunt, from Anglo-Norman marchaunt, which traces back through mercans to the verb mercor, meaning 'I trade, deal, sell.'

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/merchant (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).