View synonyms for

sell-off

[ sel-awf, -of ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Stock Exchange. a sudden and marked decline in stock or bond prices resulting from widespread selling.
an act or instance of liquidating assets or subsidiaries, as by divestiture.

sell off

verb

tr, adverb to sell (remaining or unprofitable items), esp at low prices

Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of sell-off¹

First recorded in 1935–40; noun use of verb phrase sell off

Discover More

Idioms and Phrases

Get rid of by selling, often at reduced prices. For example, The jeweler was eager to sell off the last of the diamond rings . [c. 1700] Also see sell out , def. 1.

Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

But he made a U-turn, pausing most of those tariffs for 90 days after a sharp sell-off in US government bonds.

From

"For several years, the market's been buying this US growth story, the US stock market's been outperforming other stock markets, and suddenly you had economists thinking tariffs would push the US into recession," she says, pointing to the massive sell-off of US stocks, US bonds and the dollar.

From

So the sharp drops in the currency - as well as the recent sell-off in US government bonds, also generally considered a safe US asset - are unusual.

From

Trump's criticism of Powell's handling of the US economy comes as his own plans for tariffs have driven a stock market sell-off and raised fears of economic recession.

From

"Although President Donald Trump was able to resist the stock market sell-off, once the bond market began to weaken too, it was only a matter of time before he folded," says Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist at Capital Economics.

From

Related Words

sell-off

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

sell like hot cakes sell oneself

Browse