What's up with the following pair of sentences?

   1. The Smiths are selling their furniture.
   2. The plants are selling like hotcakes.


   - #1 is obviously a standard present progressive SVO.  Is #2 just an
   intransitive form of "to sell"?
   - Are there other examples like this or is this idiosyncratic to "sell"?

Just thought of another possible candidate:

   - John is growing cauliflower.
   - The cauliflower is growing bigger every day.

Thanks,

John

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