Bar"gain, v. i. [OE. barganien, OF.
bargaigner, F. barguigner, to hesitate, fr. LL.
barcaniare. See Bargain, n.] To make a
bargain; to make a contract for the exchange of property or services; --
followed by with and for; as, to bargain with a farmer
for a cow.
So worthless peasants bargain for their wives.
Shak.
Bar"gain (?), n. [OE. bargayn,
bargany, OF. bargaigne, bargagne, prob. from a
supposed LL. barcaneum, fr. barca a boat which carries
merchandise to the shore; hence, to traffic to and fro, to carry on
commerce in general. See Bark a vessel. ] 1. An
agreement between parties concerning the sale of property; or a contract by
which one party binds himself to transfer the right to some property for a
consideration, and the other party binds himself to receive the property
and pay the consideration.
A contract is a bargain that is legally binding.
Wharton.
2. An agreement or stipulation; mutual
pledge.
And whon your honors mean to solemnize
The bargain of your faith.
Shak.
3. A purchase; also ( when not qualified), a
gainful transaction; an advantageous purchase; as, to buy a thing at a
bargain.
4. The thing stipulated or purchased; also,
anything bought cheap.
She was too fond of her most filthy bargain.
Shak.
Bargain and sale (Law), a species of
conveyance, by which the bargainor contracts to convey the lands to the
bargainee, and becomes by such contract a trustee for and seized to the use
of the bargainee. The statute then completes the purchase; i. e.,
the bargain vests the use, and the statute vests the possession.
Blackstone. -- Into the bargain, over and
above what is stipulated; besides. -- To sell
bargains, to make saucy (usually indelicate) repartees.
[Obs.] Swift. -- To strike a bargain, to reach
or ratify an agreement. "A bargain was struck."
Macaulay.
Syn. -- Contract; stipulation; purchase; engagement.
Bar"gain, v. t. [imp. & p.
p. Bargained (?); p. pr. & vb. n.
Bargaining.] To transfer for a consideration; to barter; to
trade; as, to bargain one horse for another.
To bargain away, to dispose of in a bargain; --
usually with a sense of loss or disadvantage; as, to bargain away
one's birthright. "The heir . . . had somehow bargained away
the estate." G. Eliot.