Consigners

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A group of individuals or entities that send goods or products for sale
2. Persons who officially transfer ownership of items to another party for distribution
3. Parties who entrust their merchandise to an intermediary with the expectation of receiving payment upon sale

Etymology: "Consigners" is the plural of "consigner", a person who sends goods to someone, usually to be sold or stored. The word is built from "consign" plus the agent suffix "-er", so the real story lies in the verb it comes from. "Consign" came into English from Old French "consigner", which in turn came from Latin "consignare". The Latin verb combined "con-", meaning "together" or "with", and "signare", "to mark or seal", from "signum", a sign or seal. The original idea was therefore of sealing or marking something as official, and only later of handing it over to another party. The agent ending has a longer journey. The "-er" comes through Middle English "-er" from Old French "-ier", which descends from Latin "-arius", the suffix denoting a person connected with something. English had its own "-ere" suffix of the same kind, so the ending blended comfortably into the native vocabulary, and "consigner" joined it as a plain, practical term for a sender.

Synonyms: shippers, senders, vendors