1. An economic condition in which there are so few suppliers of a particular product that their actions can have a significant impact on prices and on their competitors.
2. A state of limited competition when a market is shared by a small number of producers or sellers.
3. An economic market with few competing producers.
4. Etymology: the suffix -poly, -polies, -polistic used in these words DO NOT refer to the prefix poly-, "many"; but to -poly, meaning, "selling, trading".

The retail gas market is a good example of oligopoly because there is a small number of firms that control a large majority of the market.

Oligopolistic markets are characterised by interactivity. The decisions of one firm influences, and are influenced by, the decisions of the other related firms.