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A high quality simple colorful storybook illustration depicting a neat stack of various brightly colored, wrapped packages and boxes, representing goods intended for sale.

mercancía

mer-kan-SEE-ah

nounfA2
merchandise?items for sale,goods?products being transported or sold,commodity?raw material or agricultural product
Also:stock?inventory held by a retailer,freight?items being shipped

📝 In Action

La tienda recibió un nuevo envío de mercancía esta mañana.

A2

The store received a new shipment of merchandise this morning.

Necesitamos declarar el valor de toda la mercancía en la aduana.

B1

We need to declare the value of all the goods at customs.

El camión se volcó y la mercancía quedó esparcida por la carretera.

B2

The truck overturned and the goods were scattered across the road.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • productos (products)
  • género (goods / type)
  • artículos (items)

Common Collocations

  • transportar mercancía – to transport goods
  • mercancía robada – stolen merchandise
  • exceso de mercancía – excess stock/inventory

💡 Grammar Points

Always Feminine

Even though this word refers to many things (like 'goods' or 'stock' in English), it is a collective noun and is always feminine: 'la mercancía'.

❌ Common Pitfalls

Using the wrong gender

Mistake: "El mercancía es cara."

Correction: La mercancía es cara. (Remember that 'mercancía' is always feminine.)

⭐ Usage Tips

Collective Noun

Think of 'mercancía' as a singular mass, like 'equipment' or 'luggage' in English. If you want to talk about individual items, use 'productos' or 'artículos'.

✏️ Quick Practice

💡 Quick Quiz: mercancía

Question 1 of 1

Which sentence correctly uses 'mercancía'?

📚 More Resources

Word Family

mercado(market) - noun
comerciar(to trade) - verb
comercio(commerce) - noun

Frequently Asked Questions

¿Por qué 'mercancía' es singular si se refiere a muchas cosas?

Mercancía es lo que llamamos un 'sustantivo colectivo'. Aunque se refiere a muchos productos o artículos, la palabra en sí misma funciona gramaticalmente como una unidad singular, como 'el equipaje' o 'la gente' en español.