peddle

verb

ped·​dle ˈpe-dᵊl How to pronounce peddle (audio)
peddled; peddling ˈped-liŋ How to pronounce peddle (audio)
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 adviceG. F. Kennan
3
: to offer or promote as valuable
peddled snake oils and miracle lotions

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 brokers are peddling times at courses across Southern California. Matt Hamilton, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2024 Fox also attempted to shift the blame to Trump for peddling lies about Smartmatic. Marshall Cohen, CNN, 12 Mar. 2024 Between 1881 and 1914, the Jewish population in London’s East End tripled, and bagels were peddled in the East London streets of Petticoat Lane and Brick Lane, and in the nearby neighborhood of Whitechapel, Ms. Balinska said. Jenny Gross, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2024 Start with a walk or peddle over the Big Dam Bridge, the continent's longest pedestrian and cycling bridge. Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2024 Fast-fashion chains like Zara and H&M peddled unisex pantomimes of these skinny upmarket styles, and before long, so did mass-retail behemoths like Old Navy and Target, signaling and consolidating small pants’ grip on the zeitgeist. Jonah Weiner, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2024 Since general manager Les Snead traded up in a blockbuster move to snag quarterback Jared Goff in the ‘06 draft, L.A. has peddled, not hoarded, their first-round selections. Jay Paris, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024 On Monday, Wise detailed that Smirnov in September had peddled a new lie, claiming that Hunter Biden was recorded talking to his father while staying at a hotel in Kyiv, Ukraine. Matt Hamilton, Los Angeles Times, 26 Feb. 2024 The fingers could be said to resemble peddling cameras. Jay Pilgreen, Kansas City Star, 12 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'peddle.' 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

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

First Known Use

1532, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of peddle was in 1532

Dictionary Entries Near peddle

Cite this Entry

“Peddle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/peddle. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

peddle

verb
ped·​dle ˈped-ᵊl How to pronounce peddle (audio)
peddled; peddling -liŋ How to pronounce peddle (audio)
-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

More from Merriam-Webster on peddle

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