sell-by date

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Noun

sell-by date (plural sell-by dates)

1. The final date on which a perishable product can be legally sold to the public.
2. (idiomatic, by extension) Used to indicate that something, or someone, is old and out of date.
   • 2007 March, William Keegan, “As Blair contemplates the hereafter, Britain must endure a life in limbo”, in The Guardian Online:

     Tony Blair insists on remaining in office well past his sell-by date - yet he can afford to go.

   • September 9, 2017 - Schlock Mercenary

     Manifold: This is not a team, Petey. This is just another mass grave.
     Ewin: Eeew. What's the sell-by date on that manifold? I think it's gone bad.

   • 2021 January 13, Paul Clifton, “Network News: Island Line bids farewell to 1930s "icon of transport"...”, in Rail, page 8:

     "They have gone past their sell-by date. But the fitters have done an amazing job keeping these units running for as long as they have.

Coordinate terms

• best-before date
• best-by date
• use-by date
• expiration date
• expiry date
• issue date

Translations

final date on which a product can be sold

• Catalan: data de caducitat f
• Danish: sidste salgsdato
• German: Mindesthaltbarkeitsdatum (de) n, MHD (de), Verfallsdatum (de) n
• Irish: spriocdháta díola m
• Italian: data di scadenza f
• Japanese: (包装食品などの)販売有効期限の日付
• Korean: (상품의) 유통 기한 ((sangpumui) yutong gihan)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: siste salgsdato m

• Spanish: fecha de caducidad f, fecha de vencimiento f
• Swedish: bäst före-datum n

See also

• expiration date
• expiry date
• shelf life
• use-by date
• due date
• best-before date