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Today it means

mart

a trading centre or market

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Where does the word "mart" come from? It comes from Middle Dutch marct, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).

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Where does the word "mart" come from? It comes from Middle Dutch marct, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).

Mart’s story begins in Middle Dutch: marct meant “market.” A market, from Latin 'mercātus'. It reached English by 1400s as mart. Borrowed through the wool and cloth trade with Flanders; revived in shop names like Kmart in the 1960s. Today, mart means a trading centre or market.

  1. Stage 1 · Middle Dutch · medieval marct "market", a market, from Latin 'mercātus'.
  2. Stage 2 · English · 1400s mart "market", borrowed through the wool and cloth trade with Flanders; revived in shop names like Kmart in the 1960s.

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