Third person singular present tense of 'sell'; to exchange goods or services for money.
From Old English sellan 'to give, hand over, deliver', from Proto-Germanic *saljaną. Originally meant 'to give' or 'to hand over' without monetary exchange, but by Middle English had developed the commercial meaning of exchange for payment.
The evolution of 'sell' from 'give' to 'exchange for money' mirrors humanity's transition from gift economies to market-based systems. Interestingly, we still use phrases like 'sell yourself' or 'sell an idea' where no money changes hands, showing how commercial language has colonized other domains of persuasion.
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