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BID Share: Tweet abbr. Bachelor of Industrial Design

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.

bid (bĭd) Share: Tweet v. bade (băd, bād) or bid, bid·den (bĭdn) or bid, bid·ding, bids v.tr. 1. past tense and past participle bid a. To offer or propose (an amount) as a price. b. To auction (a contract): The city will bid the project next summer. c. To offer (someone) membership, as in a group or club: "glancing around to be sure that he had been bid by a society that he wanted" (Louis Auchincloss). d. Games To state one's intention to take (tricks of a certain number or suit in cards): bid four hearts. 2. To utter (a greeting or salutation): I bid you farewell. 3. To issue a command to; direct: "Lee ... bid the captain sit beside him and report" (Stephen W. Sears). 4. To invite to attend; summon: The host bid the guests come to dinner. v.intr. past tense and past participle bid 1. To make an offer to pay or accept a specified price: decided not to bid on the roll-top desk. 2. To seek to win or attain something; strive. n. 1. a. An offer to pay a certain amount of money for something: made a bid on the antique desk. b. The amount offered or proposed: The highest bid at the auction was $5,000. 2. An invitation, especially one offering membership in a group or club. 3. An earnest effort to win or attain something: a team in a bid to win the championship; a candidate who made a bid for the presidency. 4. Games a. The act of bidding in cards. b. The number of tricks or points declared. c. The trump or no-trump declared. d. The turn of a player to bid. Phrasal Verbs: bid in To outbid on one's own property at an auction in order to raise the final selling price. bid out To offer (work) for bids from outside contractors. bid up To cause (a price) to rise by increasing the amount bid: bid up the price of wheat. Idioms: bid defiance To refuse to submit; offer resistance to. bid fair To appear likely. [Middle English bidden, to ask, command (from Old English biddan; see gwhedh- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots) and Middle English beden, to offer, proclaim (from Old English bēodan; see bheudh- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots).] bidder n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.

# Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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