Definition

Noun: 1. A shop selling meat and poultry: A retail establishment where fresh meat, poultry, and sometimes fish are sold to consumers. 2. A situation or place where people are treated impersonally or as commodities: (Figurative/Slang) A context, often a social gathering like a bar or club, where people are viewed or treated primarily as objects for romantic or sexual pursuit, rather than as individuals.

Usage Examples

• Literal meaning:

  • I need to stop by the meat market to buy a chicken for dinner.
  • The old-fashioned meat market on the corner has the best cuts of beef.

• Figurative/Slang meaning:

  • That singles bar feels like a total meat market; everyone is just sizing each other up.
  • Some people avoid dating apps because they don't want to participate in a digital meat market.

Advanced Usage

• The figurative use often carries a negative connotation, criticizing environments perceived as superficial or dehumanizing.
• It can be applied to various contexts beyond social scenes, such as certain competitive job fairs or industries where people are evaluated solely on superficial attributes.

Variants and Related Words

• Butcher shop: A more common and neutral synonym for the literal meaning of a shop selling meat.
• Cattle market: A similar slang term, primarily used in British English, with the same figurative meaning.

Synonyms

• Literal: Butcher shop, butcher's, meat shop.
• Figurative: Pickup joint, singles bar (for the place); dehumanizing environment.

Related Idioms & Phrases

• To be on the market: (Idiom) To be available for sale or, figuratively, for dating. While related in theme to the figurative use of "meat market," it is a separate phrase.
  • After his divorce, he was back on the market.

Noun

1. a shop in which meat and poultry (and sometimes fish) are sold