# What is Monopoly? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 11, 2002, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046 "2002-12-11T17:52:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/1 "2002-12-11T17:52:08Z")
I have had this certain question on my mind , so what is a Monopoly? Please say it wasn’t a made up word for the board game. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/2 "2002-12-11T17:57:30Z")
A situation in which one single company provides the entire supply of a certain product? ---
**Author:** ![silverfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e480ec/32.png) [@silverfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silverfish)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/3 "2002-12-11T17:59:05Z")
Monopoly is an business term. A company has a monopoly when they are the only supplier in a certain market. So, many lotteries are monopolies in that the government is the only group who are allowed to run them. Similarly, if one company was the only bus company in an area, they would have a monopoly over the local bus travel market. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/4 "2002-12-11T18:00:40Z")
No, it’s not made up. A _monopoly_ is an “exclusive control of a commodity or service in a particular market, or a control that makes possible the manipulation of prices.” ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/5 "2002-12-11T18:01:45Z")
Are you capable of looking up a word in a dictioanary? Or don’t you know what one of those is either? ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/6 "2002-12-11T18:04:20Z")
Additionally, the government often looks at businesses to determine if they are operating a monopoly and orders them to either break up into smaller companies or to reveal proprietary information so that other companies can get a fair foothold in the market. AT&T, Microsoft, Standard Oil are some examples of companies ordered to break up their monopolies in some manner. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/7 "2002-12-11T18:04:55Z")
FYR, the term is a compound of Greek words meaning “one” and “city”. If you’re the only supplier in the city, you have the monopoly. Anyway, it should be possible to find it in even mediocre dictionaries. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/8 "2002-12-11T18:06:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tapioca Dextrin \* > \*\*Are you capable of looking up a word in a dictioanary? Or don’t you know what one of those is either? \*\* I really have to say that I agree with this. I don’t think you are dumb for not knowing what a monopoly is, but surely you do know how to use a dictionary? ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/9 "2002-12-11T18:06:15Z")
Monopoly as a word was in use long before the game was coined “Monopoly” Mono = ONE Poly = MANY When one has many = monopoly Anti-trust laws were enacted in the early 1900’s to prevent someone from running a monopoly, which is not beneficial to consumers, because a monopoly means no competition, and that means poor service and pricing for consumers (usually). ---
**Author:** ![Scupper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Scupper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scupper)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/10 "2002-12-11T18:06:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tapioca Dextrin \* > \*\*Are you capable of looking up a word in a dictioanary? Or don’t you know what one of those is either? \*\* civility n 1: formal or perfunctory politeness [ant: incivility] 2: the act of showing regard for others [syn: politeness] ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/11 "2002-12-11T18:13:19Z")
ok, thanx guys ---
**Author:** ![JoeyHemlock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7ba0ec/32.png) [@JoeyHemlock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoeyHemlock)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/12 "2002-12-11T18:26:39Z")
Please say it wasn’t a made up description for a board troll. ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/13 "2002-12-11T18:33:05Z")
My moronic brother has posted this message while I was having dinner, Moderator I want this Thread locked. For the rest of you guys, sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Kwyjibo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/59ef9b/32.png) [@Kwyjibo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kwyjibo)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/14 "2002-12-11T18:38:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ryan\_Liam \* > \*\*My moronic brother has posted this message while I was having dinner, Moderator I want this Thread locked. > > For the rest of you guys, sorry. \*\* Uh huh… And he posted [this one too](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=2703025#postid=2703025)?:rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![cuauhtemoc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecb155/32.png) [@cuauhtemoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cuauhtemoc)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/15 "2002-12-11T18:39:22Z")
Good Lord that was a lot of unnecessary snottiness. ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/16 "2002-12-11T18:42:30Z")
No… I wrote that apology as well. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/17 "2002-12-11T19:21:07Z")
Note that under US law, you don’t have to actually be a monopoly to be affected by anti-trust laws. Some mergers (back in the good old days) were actually stopped by the DoJ since the resulting company might control only 40% of the market (and no proof of abuse was required). So the dictionary definition and the (old) legal definition are not the same. But thanks to who we’ve been electing lately, even 97% control is no longer considered a monopoly. We need T.R. back in charge of things. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Mermaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@The\_Mermaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Mermaid)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/18 "2002-12-11T19:21:23Z")
Being as your brother has been able to make you look foolish at least twice, perhaps you could consider changing your password. Or turn the cookies off perhaps? Or make him get his own username? ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/19 "2002-12-11T19:50:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Mermaid \* > Or make him get his own username? If this is an example of his brother’s _work_ bite your tongue for even suggesting that! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046/20 "2002-12-11T19:50:50Z")
**Scupper** and **cuauhtemoc** recently there has been a pit thread [may explain](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=148737) the apparent lack of civility. Additionally, there is a new rule that has been added to the SDMB registration agreement to deal with this issue. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-monopoly/142046.md?page=2)