contract
noun [ C ]
uk/ˈkɒntrækt/ us LAW
a formal agreement between two people or companies, or a legal document that explains the details of this agreement:
contract for sth The contract for the new drilling platform went to a Dutch company.
contract to do sth He recently landed a contract to write a book about his expedition.
contract with sb State agencies spent about $319 million on contracts with private vendors last year.
contract between sb and sb It is a standard contract between a home seller and their agent.
An independent contractor is legally responsible for job completion and, on quitting, becomes liable for breach of contract.
draw up/write up a contract
enter into/sign a contract
be awarded/win/land a contract
a long-term/short-term contract
FINANCE, STOCK MARKET
a formal agreement relating to buying or selling a stock, currency, commodity, etc. for a particular price at a particular time:
An option differs from a futures contract, in which both parties make a binding agreement to buy or sell currency at some point in the future.
be under contract
LAW
to have made a formal agreement with another person or company, and be legally responsible for doing what you have agreed to do:
We're under contract to complete the job by the end of the year.
PROPERTY
if a building or property is under contract, the owner has officially agreed to sell it to a particular person for a particular price:
Two of the site's 8000 sq ft commercial lofts are currently under contract.
put sth out to contract
WORKPLACE
if an organization, government, etc. puts something out to contract, they allow different companies to compete to provide a service or do a job for them:
One way to make the process more efficient would be to put it out to contract.
See also
aleatory contract
annual hours contract
bilateral contract
evergreen contract
executed contract
express contract
formal contract
forward contract
frustration of contract
futures contract
implied contract
labor contract
naked contract
onerous contract
options contract
oral contract
performance contract
personal contract
rolling contract
service contract
standard-form contract
turnkey contract
unenforceable contract
unilateral contract
voidable contract
void contract
contract
verb
uk/kənˈtrækt/ us [ I ] ECONOMICS
if a market or economy contracts, less money is being earned, spent, or invested in it:
contract by 3%/5%, etc. The country’s economy contracted by 2% in the first quarter.
[ I or T ] LAW
to make a legal agreement with another person or company, for example, to do work for them or to use their services:
be contracted to do sth A local architecture firm was contracted to design and plan the new symphony hall.
Phrasal verbs
contract in
contract out
contract sth out
contract
adjective [ before noun ]
UK uk/ˈkɒntrækt/ us WORKPLACE
contract workers are paid by companies or other organizations to work on a particular job, but are not employees of those companies, organizations, etc.:
Many contract workers provide services once handled in-house by the military.
New and growing businesses often initially hire contract labor to prevent overstaffing and runaway overheads.
contract computing staff
Compare
freelance adjective