www.merriam-webster.com Open in urlscan Pro
2600:9000:223d:ee00:c:3d32:e340:93a1  Public Scan

Form analysis
3 forms found in the DOM

/dictionary

<form class="container s-frm clearfix" id="mw-search-frm" action="/dictionary">
  <div class="s-term-cnt border-box">
    <button class="search-bar-submit" aria-label="Search">
      <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="11" height="9" viewBox="0 0 11 9" data-inject-url="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dist-classic/images/svg/search-bar--submit.svg" class="svg replaced-svg">
        <title>Search Bar Submit Icon</title>
        <path fill="#cbe1ea" fill-rule="evenodd" d="M10.563 4.635L6.987 9l-2.11-1.147L7.555 4.5 4.877 1.147 6.987 0l3.575 4.384v.25zm-4.876 0L2.112 9 .002 7.853 2.68 4.5.001 1.147 2.111 0l3.576 4.384v.25z"></path>
      </svg>
    </button>
    <input aria-label="Search term" name="s" id="s-term" class="s-term ui-autocomplete-input" type="text" value="oligopoly" autocapitalize="off" spellcheck="false" autocorrect="off" autocomplete="off">
    <div class="clear-term-cnt active" id="clear-term-cnt">
      <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" class="clear-search svg replaced-svg" id="clear-search" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 18 18" data-inject-url="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dist-classic/images/svg/search--clear.svg">
        <title>Clear Search Icon</title>
        <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd" stroke="#265667" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-width="3">
          <path d="M1.5 1.5l15 15M16.5 1.5l-15 15"></path>
        </g>
      </svg>
    </div>
    <div class="nav-search-btn desk-search-btn">
      <span class="search-icon">
        <svg width="26px" height="29px" viewBox="0 0 26 29" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" data-inject-url="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dist-classic/images/svg/search.svg"
          class="svg replaced-svg">
          <title>Search Icon</title>
          <g class="Search" stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd">
            <g class="g-search-icon" transform="translate(1.000000, 1.000000)" fill="#265667" fill-rule="nonzero">
              <path
                d="M17.5185815,17.4073633 L24.5896493,24.4784311 C24.9801736,24.8689554 24.9801736,25.5021204 24.5896493,25.8926447 L23.1754357,27.3068582 C22.7849114,27.6973825 22.1517464,27.6973825 21.7612221,27.3068582 L14.6901543,20.2357904 C14.29963,19.8452661 14.29963,19.2121011 14.6901543,18.8215769 L16.1043679,17.4073633 C16.4948922,17.016839 17.1280572,17.016839 17.5185815,17.4073633 Z M10.5,21 C4.70101013,21 0,16.2989899 0,10.5 C0,4.70101013 4.70101013,0 10.5,0 C16.2989899,0 21,4.70101013 21,10.5 C21,16.2989899 16.2989899,21 10.5,21 Z M10.5,18 C14.6421356,18 18,14.6421356 18,10.5 C18,6.35786438 14.6421356,3 10.5,3 C6.35786438,3 3,6.35786438 3,10.5 C3,14.6421356 6.35786438,18 10.5,18 Z"
                class="Oval"></path>
            </g>
          </g>
        </svg>
      </span>
    </div>
  </div>
  <div id="mw-search-tabs" class="header-search-tabs  search-dictionary">
    <div class="button dictionary-tab  active" data-search-url="/dictionary" data-ref="dictionary"><span class="search-ref">dictionary</span></div>
    <div class="button thesaurus-tab " data-search-url="/thesaurus" data-ref="thesaurus"><span class="search-ref">thesaurus</span></div>
  </div>
  <div id="mw-autocomplete" class="s-autocomplete border-box">
    <ul id="ui-id-1" tabindex="0" class="ui-menu ui-widget ui-widget-content ui-autocomplete ui-front" style="display: none;"></ul>
  </div>
</form>

POST /word-of-the-day

<form class="js-wod-subscribe-frm wotd-side__subscribe__form" action="/word-of-the-day" method="post">
  <input type="submit" class="wod-submit wotd-side__subscribe__form__submit" name="wod-submit" value="SUBSCRIBE">
  <input type="text" class="wod-subscribe wotd-side__subscribe__form__input" name="wod-subscribe" placeholder="Your email address" aria-label="Subscribe to Word of the Day">
</form>

<form data-medium="footer" class="footer-subscribe js-wod-subscribe-frm">
  <input class="footer-subscribe-field" type="text" name="email" value="" aria-label="Sign up for Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day newsletter" placeholder="Your email address">
  <input class="footer-subscribe-button" type="submit" name="submit" aria-label="Subscribe" value="SUBSCRIBE">
  <input class="footer-subscribe-button hidden arrow" type="submit" name="submit" value=">">
</form>

Text Content

Merriam-Webster Logo Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Merriam-Webster Logo
Search Icon
GAMES & QUIZZES THESAURUS WORD OF THE DAY FEATURES SHOP
Buying Guide link icon M-W Books link icon
JOIN MWU
 * 
   Up Down
   Merriam-Webster Logo MY WORDSMY WORDS Recents Icon RECENTS settings log out
 * LOG IN
 * REGISTER

Search Bar Submit Icon
Clear Search Icon
Search Icon
dictionary
thesaurus

Merriam-Webster Logo Log in Sign Up
Hello,

Games & Quizzes Thesaurus Word of the Day Features Buying Guide link icon M-W
Books link icon Join MWU
 * Word List Icon My WordsMy Words
 * Recents Icon View Recents
 * Account Icon Account

Log Out
Mobile Menu Close Icon




OLIGOPOLY

noun
Save Word

To save this word, you'll need to log in.

Log In 

ol· i· gop· o· ly | \ ˌä-lə-ˈgä-pə-lē How to pronounce oligopoly (audio) , ˌō- \


DEFINITION OF OLIGOPOLY



: a market situation in which each of a few producers affects but does not
control the market
Other Words from oligopoly Example Sentences Learn More About oligopoly


OTHER WORDS FROM OLIGOPOLY

oligopolist \ ˌä- lə- ˈgä- pə- list How to pronounce oligopoly (audio) , ˌō- \
noun
oligopolistic \ ˌä- lə- ˌgä- pə- ˈli- stik How to pronounce oligopoly (audio) ,
ˌō- \ adjective





EXAMPLES OF OLIGOPOLY IN A SENTENCE

Recent Examples on the Web The prescription hearing-aid industry, led by an
oligopoly known as the Big Five that controls more than 90 percent of the market
for hearing aids, failed to stop the bill. — Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 30
June 2022 Unlike the evil oligarchy of ancient Athens, the A.I. oligopoly set
out to do good. — Wendell Wallach, Fortune, 16 June 2022 Both Biden and Congress
seek to blame an anti-competitive oligopoly of foreign shipping lines for
colluding to artificially raise prices on American consumers. — Nicolás Rivero,
Quartz, 17 June 2022
But against that, consider that Micron is part of an oligopoly in memory chips.
— John Dorfman, Forbes, 16 May 2022 Each warned that the cloud oligopoly carries
risks for customers if the sector becomes lethargic, but none called for a
government crackdown. — Jacob Carpenter, Fortune, 8 Mar. 2022 No other market in
the world is left to function with so little oversight and with such
asymmetrical terms in favor of an oligopoly. — Maritza Johnson, Fortune, 28 Feb.
2022 The disk drive market is an oligopoly with three players. — John Dorfman,
Forbes, 31 Jan. 2022 Attacking the meat oligopoly has its economic and political
virtues. — Jan Dutkiewicz, The New Republic, 6 Jan. 2022
See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news
sources to reflect current usage of the word 'oligopoly.' Views expressed in the
examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us
feedback.


FIRST KNOWN USE OF OLIGOPOLY

1895, in the meaning defined above




HISTORY AND ETYMOLOGY FOR OLIGOPOLY

olig- + -poly (as in monopoly)




LEARN MORE ABOUT OLIGOPOLY



Share oligopoly

Post the Definition of oligopoly to Facebook Facebook Share the Definition of
oligopoly on Twitter Twitter

Time Traveler for oligopoly

Time Traveler


THE FIRST KNOWN USE OF OLIGOPOLY WAS IN 1895

See more words from the same year


DICTIONARY ENTRIES NEAR OLIGOPOLY

oligopod

oligopoly

oligopsonist

See More Nearby Entries 


STATISTICS FOR OLIGOPOLY

Last Updated

22 Jul 2022

Look-up Popularity

Top 10% of words

Cite this Entry

“Oligopoly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster,
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oligopoly. Accessed 26 Aug. 2022.

Style: MLA

MLA Chicago APA Merriam-Webster

Seen & Heard
People are talking about
Skip
Ads by






More Definitions for oligopoly



oligopoly

noun
ol· i· gop· o· ly | \ ˌä-li-ˈgä-pə-lē, ˌō- How to pronounce oligopoly (audio) \
plural oligopolies


LEGAL DEFINITION OF OLIGOPOLY



: a condition in which a few sellers dominate a particular market to the
detriment of competition by others


More from Merriam-Webster on oligopoly

Nglish: Translation of oligopoly for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about oligopoly

WORD OF THE DAY



VOCIFEROUS

Listen to the pronunciation of vociferous

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!




TEST YOUR VOCABULARY



Commonly Confused Words Quiz

 * 
 * I went to the ______ store to buy a birthday card.

 * stationery stationary

Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!

TAKE THE QUIZ

A daily challenge for crossword fanatics.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and
advanced search—ad free!

Merriam-Webster unabridged
Words at Play
 * 'Dunderhead' and Other ‘Nicer’ Ways to Say Stupid
   
   As illustrated by some very smart pups

 * 10 Words from Place Names
   
   Bikini, bourbon, and badminton were places first

 * 'Pride': The Word That Went From Vice to Strength
   
   Do you take pride in Pride?

 * When Were Words First Used?
   
   Look up any year to find out

Ask the Editors
 * Literally
   
   How to use a word that (literally) drives some pe...

 * 'All Intensive Purposes' or 'All Intents and Purposes'?
   
   We're intent on clearing it up

 * Lay vs. Lie
   
   Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.

 * Hot Mess
   
   "The public is a hot mess"

Word Games
 * What Are You Wearing?
   
   Roll up your sleeves and identify these garments
   
   Take the quiz

 * Name That Animal: Volume 2
   
   Can you tell a meerkat from a wombat?
   
   Take the quiz

 * How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?
   
   Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!
   
   Take the quiz

 * Spelling Bee Quiz
   
   Can you outdo past winners of the National Spelli...
   
   Take the quiz

Merriam Webster

Learn a new word every day. Delivered to your inbox!



OTHER MERRIAM-WEBSTER DICTIONARIES

 * MERRIAM-WEBSTER'S UNABRIDGED DICTIONARY
 * SCRABBLE® WORD FINDER
 * MERRIAM-WEBSTER DICTIONARY API

 * NGLISH - SPANISH-ENGLISH TRANSLATION
 * BRITANNICA ENGLISH - ARABIC TRANSLATION

FOLLOW US

 * Facebook
 * Twitter
 * YouTube
 * Instagram

 * Browse the Dictionary:
 * a
 * b
 * c
 * d
 * e
 * f
 * g
 * h
 * i
 * j
 * k
 * l
 * m
 * n
 * o
 * p
 * q
 * r
 * s
 * t
 * u
 * v
 * w
 * x
 * y
 * z
 * 0-9
 * BIO
 * GEO

 * Home
 * Help
 * About Us
 * Shop
 * Advertising Info
 * Dictionary API
 * Contact Us
 * Join MWU
 * Videos
 * Word of the Year
 * Vocabulary Resources
 * Law Dictionary
 * Medical Dictionary
 * Privacy Policy
 * Terms of Use

 * Browse the Thesaurus
 * Browse the Medical Dictionary
 * Browse the Legal Dictionary

© 2022 Merriam-Webster, Incorporated




Update Privacy Preferences