Meaning & use
market day
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
The day of the week on which a town holds its regular market.
Grammar: Often takes the: Thursday is market day. It can also take a possessive: the town's market day.
Patterns
- on market day
- market day in somewhere
Tuesday is market day, so the main street is closed to cars.
The farmers arrive early on market day to set up their stalls.
We always buy cheese and apples on market day.
nouncountable
A special day when traders or sellers gather to sell goods, often to raise money or attract visitors.
Grammar: Can be used for a one-off event: the school's market day.
Patterns
- hold a market day
- a market day for something
The school is holding a market day to raise money for the library.
Our village has a market day in spring with crafts and food.
Students ran stalls at the business class market day.
Word forms
| plural | market days |
|---|
Common combinations
- on market day
- The square is packed on market day.
- a busy market day
- It was a busy market day with long queues at every stall.
- weekly market day
- The town keeps a weekly market day on Fridays.
- market day crowds
- Market day crowds filled the narrow streets.
- hold a market day
- The church will hold a market day next month.
Synonyms and how they differ
- fair
- A fair is usually bigger and may include entertainment, while market day is mainly about buying and selling.
- bazaar
- A bazaar suggests a permanent market or a charity sale, whereas market day is a specific day of the week.
- fete
- A fete is a fundraising outdoor event with games, while market day centers on stalls and trade.
Word family
- market noun
- a place or event for buying and selling
- marketplace noun
- an open area where a market is held
- market town noun
- a town with a regular market
- marketing noun
- promoting and selling products
Commonly confused: market day or market stall?
market day vs market stall
A market stall is a single table or stand where goods are sold, while market day is the day the whole market runs.
Practice
On ____, the town square fills with stalls selling vegetables and flowers.
Choose one answer.
Market day is the fixed phrase for the day a town holds its market. The other choices are not standard expressions or mean something different.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “market day”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.