purchase

purchase — verb

IPA/ˈpɜːtʃəs/
KK[pˈɚtʃəs]IPA/ˈpɜːrtʃəs/
  • purchasepresent simple I / you / we / they
  • purchaseshe / she / it
  • purchasedpast simple
  • purchasing-ing form

1. to get something by paying money for it, used especially in business, legal, or

1.verbtransitiveB1
Definition

to get something by paying money for it, used especially in business, legal, or official contexts rather than everyday conversation.

Example

The company purchased new computers for all employees last month.

formal business context: company + purchase + equipment

After comparing prices online, Noa purchased a first-class ticket to London.

Common collocations
  • purchase goods
  • purchase property
  • purchase tickets
  • purchase equipment
  • purchase software
Synonyms
  • buy

    less formal; the everyday word for exchanging money for goods

  • acquire

    broader — can mean getting something without paying (e.g. acquire a skill)

  • procure

    formal, often implies effort or difficulty in obtaining

Antonyms
  • sell

    opposite action — to give something in exchange for money

Grammar Patterns

purchase + object

Usage Note

More formal than 'buy'. Common in business, legal, official, and institutional contexts. Less suitable for casual conversation about everyday shopping.

Common Mistakes

I purchased some snacks at the convenience store.
I bought some snacks at the convenience store.
'Purchase' sounds unnatural for small, everyday items; use 'buy' in casual contexts.

purchase — noun

IPA/ˈpɜː.tʃəs/
KK[pˈɚtʃəs]IPA/ˈpɝː.tʃəs/

Word family

  • purchaser
    nounB2
  • purchasable
    adjectiveC1
  • purchasing
    nounB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

Buy and purchase both mean getting something by paying money, but purchase is more formal and suits business, legal, and official writing, while buy is the everyday choice for casual conversation. Acquire is broader — you can acquire a skill, a habit, or a company, not just things you pay for. Procure is also formal but implies effort, careful planning, or difficulty in obtaining the item (e.g. procuring rare medicine during a shortage). In most daily situations, buy is the natural choice; use purchase in documents, reports, or formal announcements.

buy ↗purchase ↗acquire ↗procure

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchAnglo-FrenchEnglish

Purchase came into English from Anglo-French 'purchacer', meaning 'to try to get' or 'to chase after'. This word was made from 'pur-' (forth) and 'chacer' (to chase), which came from Latin 'captiare' (to try to seize). Originally it meant obtaining something through effort or pursuit, and later narrowed to mean obtaining by paying money.