Meanings
alternative merchantile
- not comparableeconomicsConcerned with the exchange of goods for profit.
1 more example
No sign was over his door; in fact—as with old banks and mercantile houses—advertising in any shape was scorned, and it would have been felt as beneath his dignity to paint, for the benefit of strangers, the name of an establishment the trade of which came solely by connection based on personal respect.
1872, [Thomas Hardy], “II. A Meeting of the Choir”, in Under the Greenwood Tree: A Rural Painting of the Dutch School, volume I, London: Tinsley Brothers, →OCLC, part II, page 139 - not comparableeconomicsOf or relating to mercantilism.
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveprofit oriented
adjectiverelating to or characteristic of trade or traders
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Italic*merks
- Latinmerx
- Latinmercor
- Latinmercantem
- Italianmercante
- Italianmercantile
- Frenchmercantile
- Englishmercantile
Borrowed from French mercantile, from Italian mercantile, from mercante (“merchant”), from Latin mercāns (“trading”).
More words from French, Italian, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek ἐμπορικός
- ἐμπορικός (emporikós)related to the exchange of goods for profit
Bulgarian търговски
- търговски (tărgovski)related to the exchange of goods for profit
Catalan mercantil
- mercantilrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Dutch handels-
- handels-related to the exchange of goods for profit
French mercantile
- mercantilerelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Irish marsantach
- marsantachrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Italian mercantile
- mercantilerelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Latin mercātōrius
- mercātōriusrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Latvian tirdzniecisks, veikalniecisks
- tirdzniecisksrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
- veikalniecisksrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Polish merkantylny, komercyjny
- merkantylnyrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
- komercyjnyrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Portuguese mercantil
- mercantilrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Russian торго́вый, мерканти́льный
- торго́вый (torgóvyj)related to the exchange of goods for profit
- мерканти́льный (merkantílʹnyj)related to the exchange of goods for profit
Spanish mercantil
- mercantilrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Turkish ticari
- ticarirelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Welsh masnachol
- masnacholrelated to the exchange of goods for profit
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
mercantile. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mercantile
“mercantile.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mercantile. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mercantile,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mercantile.
Source: mercantile on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.