Meaning & use
barter system
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A way of trading in which people exchange goods or services directly, without using money.
Grammar: Countable but usually singular: the barter system, a barter system. You can say barter systems for different examples.
Patterns
- the barter system
- use a barter system
- under a barter system
Before coins were invented, many communities relied on the barter system.
In a barter system, a farmer might trade a bag of rice for a pair of shoes.
The barter system still exists in some remote areas where money is scarce.
nounsingular
The practice of exchanging things by agreement rather than paying cash, often informally.
Grammar: Often used with 'a' or 'the' to mean the general practice, not a specific system.
Patterns
- resort to a barter system
- operate on a barter system
When the banks closed, the village fell back on a barter system.
Some online communities have set up a barter system for skills and services.
Word forms
| plural | barter systems |
|---|
Common combinations
- rely on the barter system
- During the crisis, people had to rely on the barter system.
- a pure barter system
- A pure barter system has no money at all.
- the decline of the barter system
- The decline of the barter system began with the invention of coins.
- under a barter system
- Under a barter system, prices are not fixed.
Synonyms and how they differ
- trade
- Trade is the general activity of buying and selling; barter system specifically means exchange without money.
- exchange
- Exchange can mean any swap, including of money; barter system emphasizes the absence of money.
Opposites
Word family
- barter verb
- To exchange goods or services without money.
- bartering noun
- The act of exchanging goods or services without money.
Commonly confused: barter system or barter?
barter system vs barter
Barter is the verb or the act; barter system is the whole method or arrangement.
Practice
In a barter system, people exchange goods and services ______ using money.
Choose one answer.
The key idea is that no money is used, so 'without' is correct. 'With' would mean money is used, which contradicts the definition.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “barter system”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.