money; act of selling: I told her how marvellous the new product was, and I soon made a sale. (=she bought it) | The law forbids the sale of alcohol to people under 18. 2 [C] a special offering of goods in a shop at lower prices than usual. Sales in Britain are usually held in January and in the summer: This shirt was a bargain – only £10 in a sale. | Have the January sales started yet? | a clearance sale | usual price £3, sale price £1.49 → see also JUMBLE SALE 3 [C] a selling of articles to whoever offers the highest price; AUCTION: a sale of fine old paintings 4 [S] also sales pl. — the total amount sold: We're hoping for a large sale/large sales for our new product. 5 for sale offered to be sold, especially by a private owner: 'How much is that picture?' 'It's only on display; it's not for sale.' | There's a 'For Sale' sign outside their house. | They've put their house up for sale. 6 on sale a) offered to be sold, especially in a shop: The latest model of this video recorder is now on sale in your shops. b) AmE at or in a SALE: I got this hat on sale; it was very cheap. 7 (on) sale or return supplied to a seller in such a way that the seller pays only for what he or she sells, and can send the rest back: The newspapers are supplied to the shop on a sale or return basis. → see also SALES, BILL OF SALE
## sale·a·ble /'serləbəl/ adj SALABLE
Salem /'serlem/ a town in Massachusetts in the eastern US, famous for the Salem Witch Trials in 1692, when many women were taken to a court of law and then officially killed because they were thought to be WITCHes (=women who use magic powers to do bad things). People sometimes use the word 'witch-hunt' to describe situations in which innocent people are punished for things they did not do or for having opinions that other people do not approve of, especially the situation in the US when the HUAC punished people who were believed to be Communists. → see Cultural Note at WITCH
,sale of 'work n BrE an event at which people sell things they have made, e.g. cakes or toys, in order to collect money for CHARITY
sale·room /'seilrum, -ruːm/ especially BrE || sales·room /'seilzrum, -ruːm/ especially AmE —.n a place where AUCTION sales are held
sales /seɪlz/ adj [A] of or for selling: this year's sales figures/forecast | our company's new sales director | We're having a special sales drive. (=trying hard to sell more products)
'sales as,sistant n SHOP ASSISTANT
sales•clerk /'seɪlzklɑːk\|-klɜːrk/ n AmE for SHOP ASSISTANT
sales•girl /'seɪlzgɜːl/ n a usually young female SHOP ASSISTANT
sales-man /'seilzmen/ n pl. -men /mən/ a male salesperson
CULTURAL NOTE Used car salesmen in the US and the UK, the STEREOTYPE of a salesman who sells used cars is someone you cannot trust because he is dishonest and has clever ways of hiding a car's faults.
sales·man·ship /'seilzmənʃɪp/ n [U] skill in selling: It's not good salesmanship to bully a customer into buying a product. | (fig.) It took some clever salesmanship to get our plan accepted by the chairman.
sales·per·son /'seɪlzpɪsənl-pɜːr-/ n pl. -people /pɪpəl/
1 a sales representative 2 (used especially in job advertisements etc) a SHOP ASSISTANT
'sales pitch n infml a salesperson's special way of talking about the goods he/she is trying to sell
'sales repre,sentative n a person who goes from place to place, usually within a particular area, selling and taking orders for their firm's goods
'sales resistance n [U] unwillingness to buy something; ability to keep oneself from being persuaded by a skilful salesperson
'sales slip n AmE a RECEIPT (=record of things bought) given in a shop
'sales talk n [U] talking intended to persuade or sell, especially by praising what is for sale
'sales tax n [C;U] (an amount or rate of) money charged as tax in addition to the ordinary price of an article or service. In the US sales tax is collected by city, COUNTY, and state governments, so it varies a lot from place to place, between 0 and 10 per cent: Most states in the US have sales taxes. → compare PURCHASE TAX, VAT
sales·wo·man /'seɪlz,wʊmən/ n pl. -women /,wɪmɪn/ a female SALESPERSON
Sal·ford /ˈsɒlˈfədəl-fərd/ an industrial city in northwest England, near to Manchester, known for its DOCKs, and for the painter L.S. LOWRY, whose paintings show the factories and people of Salford
sa·li·ent¹ /'seilient/ adj fml standing out most noticeably or importantly: The salient features/points of his plan are summed up in this report.
salient $ ^{2} $ n tech an angle pointing outwards, especially in the wall of a fort or in a line of holes dug in a battlefield for defence
sa·line /'seɪlarn/ adj tech of or containing salt: a saline solution —→inity /səˈlɪnɪti/ n [U] to test the salinity of the water
Sal·in·ger, J. D./'sælindzər/ (1919-) a US writer best known for his book The Catcher in the Rye, one of the most famous and popular US novels ever written. Since writing this in 1951, he has written some short stories, but he has never written another novel, and he is known for being a RECLUSE (=someone who lives on their own and avoids other people).
Salis·bu·ry /'sɒlzbəriːl-beri/ a city in southern England famous for its large 13th century CATHEDRAL, which attracts many tourists
'Salisbury 'Plain a large piece of open country in southern England, used by the army as a training area. STONEHENGE, a structure of stone circles from 2500–1500 BC, is on Salisbury Plain.
sa·li·va·ry /sə'laivərɪl'saelʌveri/ adj [A] of saliva or the organs (salivary glands) producing it
,Salisbury 'steak n a popular US dish made of finely cut BEEF which is formed into a flat shape and cooked in GRAVY
sa·li·va /sə'larvə/ n [U] the natural watery liquid produced in the mouth
sal-i-vate /'saɪlʌveɪt/ v [1] tech or humor to produce (an increased amount of) saliva in the mouth: I was salivating at the thought of the cream cakes. —-vation /,saɪlʌveɪʃən/ n [U]
Salk, Jonas/sok, sok, 'dzəunəs/(1914–95) a US scientist who produced the first successful VACCINE (=a substance that is put into a person's body to protect them from a disease) against POLIO (=a serious disease that damages muscles permanently)
sal·low¹ /'sæləʊ/ adj (of the skin) rather yellow and unhealthy-looking: a sallow complexion —ness n [U]
sallow² n a tree of the WILLOW family
sal·ly¹ /'sæli/ n 1 a quick attack and return to a position of defence; SORTIE 2 fml a clever or sharply humorous remark; Her witty sallies made him angry.
sally² v
sally forth/out phr v [1] old use or humor to go or come out especially from a safe place to meet some difficulty: She opened the door and sallied forth to face the waiting crowd of journalists.
,Sally 'Army, the BrE an informal name for the SÀLVATION ARMY
salmon /'sæmən/ n pl. salmon or salmons 1 [C;U] a large fish of the northern oceans with silvery skin and pink flesh that swims up rivers to lay its eggs. It is thought of as being expensive and only for special occasions: to go fishing for salmon | tinned salmon | smoked salmon sandwiches 2 [U also 'salmon 'pink — yellowish-pink → see also ROCK SALMON
sal·mo·nel·la /,salmə'nələ·/ n [U] a bacterium that causes food poisoning, stomach pains etc. Salmonella is often found in incorrectly cooked chicken and is sometime present in uncooked eggs.
'salmon trout n [C;U] a large TROUT with pink flesh
Sa-lo-me /səˈləʊmi/ in the New Testament of the Bible, the STEPDAUGHTER of King HEROD, who performed a dance called the DANCE OF THE SEVEN VEILS. Her dancing pleases