1
a
past tense and past participle bid
(1)
: to offer (a price) whether for payment or acceptance
The contractor bid $10,000 less than his nearest competitor.
(2)
card games
: to make a bid (see bid entry 2 sense 4) of or in (a suit at cards)
bid one spade
b
: offer
—usually used in the phrase to bid defiance
The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown.—
William Pitt
William Pitt2
3
: to give expression to
bade a tearful farewell
: to make a bid (see bid entry 2)
Several other companies bid on the job.
bidder
noun
1
a
: a statement of what one will give or take for something
is now accepting bids for the renovation project
especially
: an offer of a price
made a bid of $100 for the painting
b
: something offered as a bid
c
: the act of one who bids (see bid entry 1)
2
: an opportunity to bid
It's your bid.
3
: an attempt or effort to win, achieve, or attract
a bid for reelection
4
card games
a
: an announcement of what a cardplayer proposes to undertake
b
: the amount of such a bid
a 3-heart bid
c
: a bridge hand on which one may reasonably bid
5
: invitation
a bid to join the sorority
6
informal
: a sentence or term of imprisonment : a stint in jail
I did my first bid at seventeen for assault, robbery, and burglary in the first degree.—William Skeans, Jr.
William Skeans, Jr.
twice a day
bachelor of industrial design
Synonyms
Examples of bid in a Sentence
Verb
I'll bid $100 for the lamp but no higher.
He plans to stop bidding if the bids go over $500.
She bid for a desk and a chair.
Several local companies are bidding for the same job.
His company bid on the snow removal contract.
He bid and I passed.
We did as we were bid.
Noun
Bids for the painter's work have been quite high at recent auctions.
She had the highest bid.
He made a bid of $100 for the painting.
He made the opening bid.
The company is accepting bids for the renovation project.
Recent Examples on the WebIvan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Apr. 2024
The company invited suppliers to bid to work on the car and forecasted producing 10,000 vehicles weekly.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 5 Apr. 2024
The hotel will bid farewell to the old-school bar with one last event, Curtain Call, which will include live music, cigars and a special menu of popular food and drinks featured on menus over the years.
—The Arizona Republic, 5 Apr. 2024
Family and friends bid farewell to the late Hamilton County Auditor Brigid Kelly on a cold and rainy Thursday morning.
—Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 4 Apr. 2024
McGraw, 42, the vice president of sales and marketing for Trans American Trucking Service, which specializes in handling industrial components, recently bid on a job to truck the Houston company’s equipment from Baltimore to Ohio.
—David J. Lynch, Washington Post, 31 Mar. 2024
Private companies could once again bid for Guyana’s vast resources.
—Gaiutra Bahadur Keisha Scarville, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
Unfortunately for the flipper, bidding on their 70-mile Cybertruck quickly slowed down, with day two only seeing the highest bid rise to $133,000.
—Collin Woodard / Jalopnik, Quartz, 23 Mar. 2024
The hope to make lemonade out of the deal by later putting the civic center complex with 101 Ash St. out to bid for redevelopment — with the inclusion of a new City Hall — soured.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Mar. 2024
Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2024
Four years ago this week, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders ended his second bid for the White House, effectively cementing Joe Biden's path to the Democratic presidential nomination.
—Elena Moore, NPR, 12 Apr. 2024
The Korean carmaker famously poached BMW’s M division boss Albert Biermann in a bid to elevate the brand’s performance.
—Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2024
The company also recently began pushing a one-month free trial of FSD in a bid to get more customers to use it
But FSD is not a perfect system.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
In an earlier bid to amplify Black voices in Toronto, Anderson and James launched the Black Academy, which started out with the annual B.L.A.C.K. Ball party at the Toronto Film Festival.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024
Popular on Variety The racing league recently signed with CAA for representation in a bid to develop content and alliances to create and distribute it.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
The council on Monday agreed to reconsider the bid, with none of its 15 members objecting.
—Rachel Pannett, Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2024
In 2020, Lyerly lost her bid to defeat state Rep. John Macco, a Republican from Ledgeview, by 52% to 48%.
—Daniel Bice, Journal Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2024
Verb
San Diego visits rival Chihuahua next week for Game 1 of a best-of-3 playoff series
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The San Diego Sockers are not quite ready to bid farewell to Pechanga Arena.
—Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Apr. 2024
The company invited suppliers to bid to work on the car and forecasted producing 10,000 vehicles weekly.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 5 Apr. 2024
The hotel will bid farewell to the old-school bar with one last event, Curtain Call, which will include live music, cigars and a special menu of popular food and drinks featured on menus over the years.
—The Arizona Republic, 5 Apr. 2024
Family and friends bid farewell to the late Hamilton County Auditor Brigid Kelly on a cold and rainy Thursday morning.
—Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 4 Apr. 2024
McGraw, 42, the vice president of sales and marketing for Trans American Trucking Service, which specializes in handling industrial components, recently bid on a job to truck the Houston company’s equipment from Baltimore to Ohio.
—David J. Lynch, Washington Post, 31 Mar. 2024
Private companies could once again bid for Guyana’s vast resources.
—Gaiutra Bahadur Keisha Scarville, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
Unfortunately for the flipper, bidding on their 70-mile Cybertruck quickly slowed down, with day two only seeing the highest bid rise to $133,000.
—Collin Woodard / Jalopnik, Quartz, 23 Mar. 2024
The hope to make lemonade out of the deal by later putting the civic center complex with 101 Ash St. out to bid for redevelopment — with the inclusion of a new City Hall — soured.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Mar. 2024
Noun
Three days before the opening of the spring transfer portal window, Bruins coach DeShaun Foster identified his wish list in a bid to infuse talent and depth into a roster that could use a heavy helping of both.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2024
Four years ago this week, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders ended his second bid for the White House, effectively cementing Joe Biden's path to the Democratic presidential nomination.
—Elena Moore, NPR, 12 Apr. 2024
The Korean carmaker famously poached BMW’s M division boss Albert Biermann in a bid to elevate the brand’s performance.
—Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2024
The company also recently began pushing a one-month free trial of FSD in a bid to get more customers to use it
But FSD is not a perfect system.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
In an earlier bid to amplify Black voices in Toronto, Anderson and James launched the Black Academy, which started out with the annual B.L.A.C.K. Ball party at the Toronto Film Festival.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024
Popular on Variety The racing league recently signed with CAA for representation in a bid to develop content and alliances to create and distribute it.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
The council on Monday agreed to reconsider the bid, with none of its 15 members objecting.
—Rachel Pannett, Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2024
In 2020, Lyerly lost her bid to defeat state Rep. John Macco, a Republican from Ledgeview, by 52% to 48%.
—Daniel Bice, Journal Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bid.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb and Noun
partly from Middle English bidden, from Old English biddan; akin to Old High German bitten to entreat, and perhaps to Sanskrit bādhate he presses; partly from Middle English beden to offer, command, from Old English bēodan; akin to Old High German biotan to offer, Greek pynthanesthai to examine, Sanskrit bodhi enlightenment
Abbreviation (1)
Latin bis in die
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2c
Noun
1788, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Time Traveler
The first known use of bid was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing bid
Dictionary Entries Near bid
Cite this Entry
“Bid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bid. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
bid
1 of 2 verb1
a
: order entry 1 sense 2a, command
did as we were bidden
2
: to express to
bade me farewell
3
past and past participle bid
: to make an offer for something (as at an auction)
bid $10 for a chair
bidder
noun
bid
2 of 2 noun1
: an offer to pay a certain sum for something or to perform certain work at a stated fee
2
: a turn or opportunity to bid
3
: invitation sense 2
received a bid to the state tournament
4
a
: an announcement of what a card player will try to win
b
: the amount of such a bid
5
: an attempt to win, achieve, or attract
made a strong bid for the job
Medical Definition
bid
abbreviation
twice a day
—used in writing prescriptions
Etymology
Abbreviation
Latin bis in die
Legal Definition
bid
1 of 2 verb
bid; bidding
: to offer (a price) for payment or acceptance
: to make a bid : state what one will pay or take in payment
bidder
noun
bid
2 of 2 noun1
: the act of one who bids
2
a
: a statement of what one will pay for something
b
: a statement of what one (as a contractor) will charge for something (as supplies or labor)
3
: an opportunity to bid
More from Merriam-Webster on bid
Nglish: Translation of bid for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of bid for Arabic Speakers
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