When learning American English, certain words may confuse you, especially when they look and sound alike. A case in point would be the words “sale” and “sell.” You may already be mistaking one for the other right now.
“Sale” is a noun that refers to either the exchange that takes place or selling at a bargain price. “Sell” is a verb that refers to the act of selling or the action of handing over something in exchange for something else. Sell can also be used metaphorically when attempting to persuade another person as in “selling someone” on an idea.
There are numerous subtle differences between “sale” and “sell,” so let’s clarify these to give you a better grasp of these two similar, yet different, words.
Sale and Sell Are Different Parts of Speech
The word “sale” always functions as a noun, whereas “sell” can function either as a noun or a verb. As a noun, “sale” always refers to the exchange or the incident.
For example:
- Have you ever wondered why America’s massive November sale is called Black Friday?
While “sell” is almost always a verb, Merriam-Webster explains that “sell” as a noun refers to the thing being sold or caused to be accepted. In this sense, it can also mean a deliberate deception or a hoax (source).
For example:
- Any suggestion I make is always a tough sell to my father.
As a verb, “sell” always refers to the act of exchanging or selling.
For example:
- Every Black Friday sale, US retail shops sell their products at insanely low prices.
How Do You Use “Sell” in a Sentence?
There are different ways you can use the word “sell” in a sentence. As a verb, it means the act of transferring ownership of goods, while, as a noun, it means something used to convince someone to accept something.
In this sentence, we used “sell’ as a verb to represent the action of selling or trading:
- I will just sell my old smartphone and buy a new one.
In the next sentences, we’ve used an alternative definition of the word “sell” to mean to cause to be accepted:
- The heavily advertised and much-anticipated movie was, in fact, a sell.
- That old house at the corner was a tough sell.
How Do You Use “Sale” in a Sentence?
You can also use the word sale in several ways, namely, to refer to a transaction or trade, as well as a bargain price.
Sale can be a finance terminology that refers to business arrangements between parties, i.e., the buyer and the seller of goods or services (source):
- The sale of my old smartphone gave me half the money that I needed to get a new one.
- The sale of XFL led to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and his group assuming control of the bankrupt American Football League.
When used as a noun for a time of discounts or bargains, a sentence would look like the following:
- I’m holding off on buying a new mobile phone in case a sale comes up by the end of December.
Do You “Sell” or Do You “Sale”?
When asking someone if they “sell” or “sale,” the correct form of the question would be, “Do you sell?”
“Sell” is a verb, and this form is in keeping with the subject-verb agreement rule that a helping verb followed by a subject must be followed by the main verb (source). Let’s look at this table on helping verbs for some examples.
| Helping Verb | Subject | Main Verb | —- |
| Do | you | sell | tickets? |
| Do | you | play | ball well? |
| Can | she | go | to work tomorrow? |
| Do | you | sell | black shoes? |
Is It “On Sell” or “On Sale”?
The right combination is “on sale” since “sale” is a noun. This follows the rule that a noun always follows a preposition, never a verb. The object of any preposition is always a noun.
Also, whenever a verb follows a preposition, it stops being a verb. Let’s look at this table for some examples.
| Subject | Verb | Preposition | Noun form/Pronoun |
| The appliance | is | on | sale. |
| I | like | to | eat. |
| (You) Please | turn | on | the TV. |
Is It Correct to Say, “Make a Sale”?
It would be correct to say, “Make a sale,” which means to sell some product or merchandise. The typical formula would be make plus article plus sale, but you can use words like “another” in-between. Let’s look at the following examples below.
- I made a sale yesterday.
- I’m hoping to make another sale today.
Is It “Put up for Sale” or “Put up for Sell”?
“Put up for sale” is the correct phrase to use because “sale” is a noun, meaning to make or have something available for sale. Here are some sentence examples:
- I’ve already put my vacation house up for sale.
- I will put my old laptop up for sale on eBay tomorrow.
Is It “Sale Price” or “Sell Price”?
When referring to a special bargain price, the correct phrase is “sale price.” “Sale price” refers to the price of a product or service that is being offered at a discounted rate, while you should never use “sell price.”
The following example of “sale price” is correct:
- Because of the 50% discount, I was able to grab this iPhone at a $550 sale price.
Using “sell price” in the next example would be incorrect, but “selling price” is acceptable to refer to the price at which an item is sold, whether at a discount or not.
- Because of the 50% discount, I was able to grab this iPhone at a selling price of $550.
Which Is Correct: “For Sale” or “For Sell”?
The right expression is “for sale,” which refers to the item that is available for trade or purchase. There is no correct use of “for sell,” but you can potentially use “for selling” in particular circumstances.
Here is an example of the proper use of “for sale”:
- I think that the old house at the corner is for sale right now.
While “for sell” would be wrong, the expression “for selling” is correct when referring to something occurring due to the act of selling:
- Some US states send you to jail for selling prohibited substances.
Are “For Sale” and “On Sale” the Same?
These phrases can bear different meanings because the term “on sale” can also mean that an item is being sold at a discounted price. However, you can use “for sale” and “on sale” interchangeably to mean the same thing.
When They Have Different Meanings
In the following two examples, “sale” means at a bargain price, while it means available on the market for buying and selling in the second example.
Example 1: CNN reports that the Black Friday in July 2020 event had Samsung putting up its newer smart devices on sale.
Example 2: Samsung’s Galaxy Note 20 was made available for sale in the first week of August 2020.
When They Have the Same Meaning
Here are two examples where “on sale” and “for sale” would be correct either way.
Example 1: According to Fox Business, Cadillac’s first electric car will go on sale in 2022.
Example 2: According to Fox Business, Cadillac’s first electric car will be available for sale by 2022.
Is It “Sales” or “Sells”?
Both “sales” or “sells” can be used depending on meaning and form. Use “sales” for the plural form of the word “sale,” and use “sells” as your verb form for a singular subject. Check out these sentences for examples:
Sales versus Sale
“Sale” is the singular form of this noun, while “sales” is the plural noun form. Let’s look at these examples:
- This week, I only made one sale on eBay.
- Last week, I was able to score three sales.
For more help with understanding the singular and plural forms of other nouns, you can consult The Oxford New Essential Dictionary, which can be found on Amazon.
Sells versus Sell
The use of either “sells” or “sell” depends on whether the subject is singular or plural:
- She sells seashells by the seashore.
- They sell seashells by the seashore.
Is “Sell” Present, Past, or Future Tense?
“Sell” is the form you use for the present and future tense of the word. For the past tense, you need to use the term “sold,” while “selling” is the progressive tense, and you can also use it to indicate future tense.
For the present tense:
- I sell shoes for a living.
For past tense:
- I sold shoes for the past 10 years.
For future tense:
- I will sell shoes on Amazon at cheaper prices.
For the present progressive tense:
- I am selling shoes on eBay right now.
For the future progressive tense:
- I will also be selling shoes on Amazon soon.
For more help with English grammar and writing styles, you can check out Dreyer’s English. For more guidance on using the proper tense, you may also review our article, “‘Has Been’ or ‘Have Been’: When to Use What Tense.”
Final Thoughts
The main difference between “sale” and “sell” is that “sale” is a noun, while “sell” is almost always a verb. The first is an activity, while the latter is the act itself. When used as a noun, “sell” can refer to something that persuaded others or even deceived them.
The differences between “sell” and “sale” can be subtle but, with practice, you can come to master them.