# monopoly

Pronunciation: US say "muh-NAH-puh-lee" /məˈnɑpəli/; say "muh-NOP-uh-lee" UK /məˈnɒpəli/, AUS /məˈnɔpəli/

## Noun

1. A market situation in which a single company or group is the only provider of a product or service, giving it strong control over prices and supply.
   - Simple: A situation where only one company sells a product, so it can control the price.
   - _The company built a near-total monopoly over regional internet service before regulators stepped in._
   - _Several local monopolies kept prices high until new competitors finally entered the market._
2. Exclusive control over the trade or production of a commodity or service, held through sole possession of it.
   - Simple: Full control over making or selling something because you alone own or hold it.
   - _By controlling every spice route, the merchants maintained a monopoly on the trade for decades._
   - _Their monopoly over the region's copper rested entirely on possessing the only smelter._
3. A legal right or privilege that grants one party the exclusive authority to control the trade or production of something.
   - Simple: A special right given by law that lets only one group sell or make something.
   - _The crown sold lucrative monopolies on salt and tobacco to favored merchants._
   - _Investors lobbied hard for a royal monopoly that would shut out all rivals._
4. The person, company, or group that holds exclusive control over a particular market.
   - Simple: The company or group that controls all selling of something in a market.
   - _As the sole monopoly in regional telecom, the firm dictated terms to every customer._
   - _Antitrust regulators moved to dismantle the monopoly that dominated online search._
5. A market that is wholly controlled by a single dominant supplier.
   - Simple: The whole market that one company controls by itself.
   - _Deregulation gradually opened the monopoly to dozens of new entrants._
   - _Once protected, the monopoly was thrown open to international competition._

## Origin

From Latin monopōlium, from Ancient Greek monopṓlion ("a right of exclusive sale"), built from mónos ("sole") and pōléō ("I sell, barter").

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