Word of the Day: Bid
A bid is an amount of money that is offered in order to get something. If a bid is too low, it might not be accepted by a seller. If a bid is too high, the buyer might be making a mistake by offering to pay too much. To make a bid on anything usually requires knowledge and experience.
- A person who wants to buy a house makes a bid. (bid = offer)
- I made a bid on a house and it was accepted.
- Our company is making a bid on a building and some land in order to expand its operations.
- People who attend auctions make bids on items that are up for sale.
- An auctioneer asks people to make bids.
When “bid” is used as a verb, it’s irregular:
| simple | past | past participle |
|---|---|---|
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bid
|
bid
|
bid
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- Tony bids on stocks that he believes are a good value. (present tense)
- He bid on a stock priced at $45 a share. He sold it the next week when it hit $50 a share. (past tense)
- Over the years, Tony has bid on stocks that have made money and lost money for him. (present perfect tense)
- A lot of money was bid on a horse that lost its race. (This sentence is in the past tense, passive voice.)
- How much money would you be willing to bid on a house that you wanted to buy?
The word “bid” is also used in circumstances when a person is trying to win a political office:
- Hillary Clinton is making her second bid for the presidency of the United States.
- Right-wing political parties in Europe are making successful bids for elected positions in government.
Essential English Dictionary
Visit the Popular English Words Beginning with B page to see the list of all words starting with letter B. For seeing the HiCafe dictionary, visit the Popular English Words with Meaning page.
