The English language has evolved with time and people still struggle to understand it to some extent.
Where there are homophones, pronouns, singulars, and plurals that confuse people, there is also some other grammatical content that makes people think about their communication skills.
Sale and Sell also make that list of confusing words for many beginners and for native speakers too.
The word Sale is a noun and is used with indefinite and definite articles like ‘a and ‘the’. The word Sell can be a verb and also a noun. It denotes an action by a person. Sell appears with the pronouns like I, he, she, or they.
Sales are so common these days, especially after the coronavirus hit the world and the pandemic put the world on locked down. The business was down even with online purchasing because we all know nothing can beat the shopping experience we get when visiting a shop physically.
In this article, we are going to learn the meanings of Sale and Sell by examples and will know the appropriate use of them. If you’re struggling or have ever struggled with the concept of these words, stay here and keep on reading.
What Does Sale Mean?
Sale means exchanging a commodity for money at a discounted price. It is a noun and can not be used with a pronoun. Instead, it is used with the articles like ‘a’ and ‘the’.
Everyone knows what a sale is its just we confuse it with other words. We all wait for it in and when it comes we try to make the fullest of it. The Black Friday Sale and Christmas Sales are examples that recall your memory of seeing this word and usage of this world around you.
If I talk about myself I just can’t help myself but hop on to any store that shows a for sale or on sale banner in front of it. Also, while scrolling social media, whenever I come across a for sale advertisement I feel like it is my duty to browse that store. This is one marketing tactic businesses use to attract people and clear their stock.
To understand grammar, it is important to learn things by example and practice them often. Examples of the word Sale are written below.
- XYZ store is offering a sale at a 50% discount.
- The Black Friday Sale is up the next Friday.
- Winter Clearance Sale is in most of the stores.
- 30% off can be availed during the Sale.
- Flights for Europe are on Sale.
What Do You Mean by Sell?
Sell means to give a commodity in exchange for money, its past form is “sold” and the person responsible for doing it is a salesperson.
Sell can be used as a verb or else as a noun. The word can be used with a pronoun like, he, she, or I.
For survival, the concept of selling was in this world since the beginning of mankind even when there wasn’t any money involved. It will be there as mankind has to survive but the method has been changing and continuously evolving with time.
When the world was simple, the selling methodology was simple but with the complexity of this world the methods have changed and marketing tactics have taken a few steps to make it easy for the business to make better profit and in that process, new terminologies have been introduced hence the confusion in the usage and understanding of those words.
Nothing beats the understanding you get through a good example so here are some examples for the word Sell.
- Mr. X is going to Sell his house soon.
- That store Sells the best products for kids.
- My nephew is awarded as the best salesman after Selling 20 cars in a month.
- XYZ outlet is Selling the clothes at a sale price.
- The airline Sells tickets at the best prices.
Which Is Correct “For Sale” or “For Sell”?
“For Sale” is the correct term as “For Sell” is grammatically incorrect.
If not used correctly, words lose their meaning and cause confusion for the readers. In the marketing world and the business fraternity, it is essential to make your communication clear and accurate so that your consumer would know what you mean and also, that way you can make the profit and the goodwill business look for in the long run.
When you see For Sale it means that a commodity or a thing is there to be exchanged with money with the person who is willing to buy it.
For the phrase, For Sell, it is possible that you may never see these words written together somewhere unless someone has done a typo mistake or else the writer has some grammatical confusion.
Check out this video to overcome the confusion Sale and Sell has created.
Is It Selling Price or Sale Price?
When you sell a commodity you make a sale and that is how a business works.
Sale price is when a commodity is at a discounted price, meaning when a product is being sold at a lower price than it was previously. The reason can be anything, clearance, defective pieces, seasonal or festive seasons, or you name it.
Selling price means the amount in which the commodity has been sold. Like if a salesperson has asked for a particular amount for a commodity and the buyer has asked for a bargain and both the parties have reached a middle point; that point of consensus and selling is the selling price.
| Sale | Sell |
| Sale is a noun. | Sell can be both, a noun or a verb. |
| Sale is used with articles like ‘a’ and ‘the’. | Sell is used with pronouns like I, he, she, or they. |
| Sale is used when a commodity is exchanged with money for a discounted amount. | Sell is used when a commodity is exchanged with money. |
| Sales are launched on occasions. | Selling is done on a daily basis. |
| When you make a sale you are selling something. | To sell something is a part of a sale. |
Summary
Sale or Sell are common words but their multiple usages in our lives have made it confusing for us to know where to actually use them.
These words are used in exchanging commodities with money. Where Sale is used for a discounted price and as a noun. Sell is used both as a noun and verb.
You might have seen banners saying that a particular store is offering a sale on a house and people will be going crazy about that.
You might have also heard how people get bonuses for selling more than others.
I hope this article has helped you understand these words better next time you see them. To read more, check our article on What’s the Difference Between “In” and “On”? (Explained)