A reduction in the price of an item, typically to clear inventory or boost sales.
A surprisingly modern compound from 'mark' + 'down,' first appearing in American retail around 1880. 'Mark' came from marking prices on goods, while 'down' indicated lowering. Before this, price reductions were called 'abatements' or 'allowances.' The retail revolution created this purely American business term.
Markdown is barely 150 years old, invented by American department stores during the Gilded Age. Before then, haggling was normal and fixed prices were rare, so there was no need for a word describing official price cuts since prices were always negotiable.
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