Fair Trade
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
An old euphemism for smug- gling. In politics the phrase signifies reciprocity of protection or free trade; that is, free trade to those nations that grant free trade to us.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Fair Trade” mean?
An old euphemism for smug- gling. In politics the phrase signifies reciprocity of protection or free trade; that is, free trade to those nations that grant free trade to us.
Is “Fair Trade” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.