Meaning & use
products
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“products” is a form of “product”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounpluralbusiness
Things that are made or grown to be sold, such as goods or items in a shop.
Grammar: Plural of product: the company sells many products.
Patterns
- products for someone
- a range of products
The company sells beauty products online.
Dairy products must be kept cold.
The store stocks local products.
nounplural
Results of an action, process or a combination of conditions, whether intended or not.
Grammar: Plural: products of a process; often with of.
Patterns
- products of something
Heat and light are products of burning.
The two kids are products of different schools.
Waste is one of the products of making steel.
nounpluralmathematics
Numbers obtained by multiplying two or more numbers together.
Grammar: Plural: the products of the equations.
Patterns
- the product of two numbers
The products of two and three, and four and five, are six and twenty.
Students list the products of each pair.
Both products are even numbers.
Word forms
| singular | product |
|---|
Common combinations
- consumer products
- The firm makes consumer products for the home.
- launch new products
- They plan to launch new products next spring.
- dairy products
- Dairy products are on the left aisle.
- by-products
- Sawdust is one of the by-products of the mill.
- range of products
- The shop offers a wide range of products.
Synonyms and how they differ
- goods
- Goods is uncountable-feeling and emphasizes things for sale in bulk, while products can also mean services-like items.
- merchandise
- Merchandise is formal and stresses items in a store, while products can include things not yet sold.
- items
- Items is a neutral and vague word for individual things, not specifically made for sale.
- results
- Results is used for outcomes of processes, matching the second sense only.
Word family
- product noun
- a single item made or the result of multiplying
- produce verb
- to make or create
- production noun
- the act of making things
- productive adjective
- achieving a lot
- producer noun
- a person or company that makes things
Commonly confused: products or produce?
products vs produce
Produce (noun, stressed first syllable) means fresh fruit and vegetables, while products are any manufactured or sold items.
Practice
Which is the correct spelling of the plural of product?
Choose one answer.
Add only s to form the plural. Product's is a possessive, and the others are misspellings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “products”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.