peddle
Americanverb (used with object)
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to carry (small articles, goods, wares, etc.) from place to place for sale at retail; hawk.
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to deal out, distribute, or dispense, especially in small quantities.
to peddle radical ideas.
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to sell (drugs) illicitly.
verb (used without object)
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to go from place to place with goods, wares, etc., for sale at retail.
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to occupy oneself with trifles; trifle.
verb
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to go from place to place selling (goods, esp small articles)
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(tr) to sell (illegal drugs, esp narcotics)
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(tr) to advocate (ideas) persistently or importunately
to peddle a new philosophy
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archaic (intr) to trifle
Other Word Forms
- repeddle verb (used with object)
- unpeddled adjective
Etymology
Origin of peddle
First recorded in 1525–35; apparently back formation from peddler; peddle in def. 5, reinforced by piddle
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Everything is there. I was stuck here," he told AFP in Karachi, near the well-known Bengali market where he peddles desiccated fish and prawns to make ends meet for $7 to $9 per day.
From Barron's
It’s as if he’s forgotten what Chipotle peddles — Mexican food.
From Los Angeles Times
"We are a normal family, but we do have to peddle a lot harder than everyone else to achieve the same," said Danni.
From BBC
The poor chap peddled it around Europe, passing out pamphlets at conventions.
From Literature
For the most part, Strong’s day-by-day chronicle of the war’s ups and downs was based on behind-the-scenes gossip and “extras” peddled by Manhattan newsboys.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
