bar·gain (bär'gĭn)
n.

1. An agreement between parties fixing obligations that each promises to carry out.
2. 1. An agreement establishing the terms of a sale or exchange of goods or services: finally reached a bargain with the antique dealer over the lamp.
   2. Property acquired or services rendered as a result of such an agreement.
3. Something offered or acquired at a price advantageous to the buyer.

v., -gained, -gain·ing, -gains.

v.intr.

1. To negotiate the terms of an agreement, as to sell or exchange.
2. To engage in collective bargaining.
3. To arrive at an agreement.

v.tr.
To exchange; trade: bargained my watch for a meal.

phrasal verb:

bargain for or on

1. To count on; expect: "I never bargained for this tearing feeling inside me" (Anne Tyler).

idiom:

into (or in) the bargain

1. Over and above what is expected; in addition.

[Middle English, from Old French bargaigne, haggling, from bargaignier, to haggle, of Germanic origin.]

bargainer bar'gain·er n.

SYNONYMS   bargain, compact, contract, covenant, deal. These nouns denote an agreement arrived at after a discussion in which the parties involved promise to honor their respective obligations: kept my end of the bargain and mowed the lawn; made a compact to correspond regularly; a legally binding contract to install new windows; a covenant for mutual defense; ignored the requests that weren't part of the deal.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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