bazaar

/bəˈzɑr/

/bəˈzɑ/

Other forms: bazaars

A bazaar is a market that has rows and rows of little shops selling miscellaneous stuff — like tube socks, velvet paintings, and corn on the cob.

Bazaar is originally a Persian word, and means "marketplace" all over the Middle East. The word was picked up by the Italians, and spread through Europe and into English. At a bazaar in Istanbul, you'd find food, electronics, clothes — useful stuff. In English, we tend to use bazaar for something closer to a flea market. Although they sound alike, bazaar has no relation to bizarre (the super weird).

Definitions of bazaar

1. noun

   a street of small shops, especially in the Middle East
   synonyms: bazar

   type of:

   market, market place, marketplace, mart

   an area in a town where a public mercantile establishment is set up
2. noun

   a shop where a variety of goods are sold
   synonyms: bazar

   type of:

   shop, store

   a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services
3. noun

   a sale of miscellany; often for charity
   “the church bazaar”

   synonyms: fair

   types:

   book fair, bookfair

   bazaar at which books are sold or auctioned off in order to raise funds for a worthy cause

   craft fair

   a fair at which objects made by craftsmen are offered for sale

   type of:

   cut-rate sale, sale, sales event

   an occasion (usually brief) for buying at specially reduced prices