Shopping: In the Store — A2 Essential Words
Ten essential A2 words (Shopping) with the complete apparatus: pronunciation, simple definitions, natural American examples, collocations, family, the common mistake and spoken usage — plus a 15-question practice quiz. Mark your status on every word.
cashier /kæˈʃɪər/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A person whose job is to take money from customers in a store or bank.
Example: The cashier gave me the receipt.
Another example: She works as a cashier at the supermarket.
Collocations: the cashier · cashier desk · pay the cashier
Synonyms: clerk (US store worker), checkout worker
Word family: cashiers (n pl) · cash (n)
⚠ Common mistake: The cashier works at the CHECKOUT or register. Self-checkout machines took the job's name away slowly.
🗣 In spoken American English: 'Next, please!' — the cashier's call that moves the line.
Register: Neutral — store essential.
basket /ˈbɑːskɪt/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A container made of woven strips (or plastic/metal in stores) for carrying things; in supermarkets, the small hand-carried kind.
Example: Put the apples in the basket.
Another example: His shopping basket was full.
Collocations: shopping basket · a basket of fruit · picnic basket
Synonyms: container, carrier
Word family: baskets (n pl) · basketball (n — the sport)
⚠ Common mistake: Shops offer baskets (hand) or carts (wheeled) — your choice tells how big the shop will be.
🗣 In spoken American English: Basketball borrowed it for its hoop — the sport is named after peach baskets.
Register: Neutral — shopping basics.
cart /kɑːrt/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A large metal basket on wheels that you push around a supermarket; online, the list of items you plan to buy.
Example: She filled the cart with vegetables.
Another example: Your online cart has three items.
Collocations: shopping cart · add to cart · a full cart
Synonyms: trolley (UK), buggy (Southern US)
Word family: carts (n pl)
⚠ Common mistake: Online shopping stole the word: 'add to cart' is the internet's favorite button. In the South, people also say 'buggy'.
🗣 In spoken American English: One wheel always wobbles — a law of supermarket physics.
Register: Neutral — shopping essential.
size /saɪz/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: How big or small something is; the measurements of clothes and shoes (small, medium, large, or numbers).
Example: What size shoes do you wear?
Another example: I need a bigger size.
Collocations: shoe size · size large · the right size
Synonyms: measurement, dimensions
Word family: sizes (n pl) · sized (adj)
⚠ Common mistake: Clothes sizes run S/M/L and numbers — and change by brand, the eternal shopper's complaint. 'One size fits all' rarely does.
🗣 In spoken American English: 'What size?' is the shoe store's first question.
Register: Neutral — shopping essential.
sale /seɪl/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A time when a store sells things at lower prices than usual; also the act of selling something.
Example: The store has a big sale this week.
Another example: These shoes are on sale for $30.
Collocations: on sale · a big sale · summer sale
Synonyms: discount event, clearance (final sale)
Antonyms: full price
Word family: sales (n pl) · sell (v)
⚠ Common mistake: ON sale (US) means price-reduced; FOR sale means available to buy — a preposition that changes money.
🗣 In spoken American English: 'Sale ends Sunday!' — the sign that empties wallets politely.
Register: Neutral — shopping essential.
mall /mɔːl/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A large building (or group of buildings) with many stores and restaurants inside, where people shop and walk.
Example: The mall has 200 stores.
Another example: Teens hang out at the mall.
Collocations: shopping mall · at the mall · mall food court
Synonyms: shopping center, plaza
Word family: malls (n pl)
⚠ Common mistake: The Mall of America in Minnesota is the country's biggest — it has an amusement park inside.
🗣 In spoken American English: Air conditioning made it America's summer living room.
Register: Neutral — shopping essential.
aisle /aɪl/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A passage between rows of shelves in a store, or between rows of seats in a theater, church, or plane.
Example: Bread is in aisle 5.
Another example: She walked down the aisle with her cart.
Collocations: aisle 5 · in the aisle · down the aisle
Synonyms: passage, row gap, corridor
Word family: aisles (n pl) · aisle (adj)
⚠ Common mistake: The S is silent: sounds like 'I'll'. Brides walk down one too — 'the aisle' also means a wedding path.
🗣 In spoken American English: Supermarket signs hang their maps from the ceiling: check above the aisle.
Register: Neutral — store essential.
shelf /ʃelf/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A flat board fixed to a wall or in a cupboard, where things are stored or displayed.
Example: The cups are on the top shelf.
Another example: Books fill every shelf in the room.
Collocations: top shelf · on the shelf · book shelf
Synonyms: rack, ledge, board
Word family: shelves (n pl — irregular) · shelve (v)
⚠ Common mistake: Plural is SHELVES (f→v), like wife/wives. In stores, eye-level shelves hold the products brands pay most for.
🗣 In spoken American English: 'Off the shelf' means ready-made, not custom.
Register: Neutral — store and home.
tag /tæɡ/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A small piece of paper or card attached to a product showing its price or information; also a children's game of chasing and touching.
Example: The price tag says forty dollars.
Another example: Leave the tags on until you are sure.
Collocations: price tag · tag on · remove the tag
Synonyms: label, ticket, sticker
Word family: tags (n pl) · tag (v)
⚠ Common mistake: Price tags hang on new clothes; keep them on until you decide — returns need them. The playground game has the same name.
🗣 In spoken American English: Shoppers hunt the red ones: red tags mean clearance.
Register: Neutral — shopping basics.
label /ˈleɪbəl/ noun A2 Shopping
Meaning: A small piece of paper or cloth on a product that gives information about it (price, size, contents, washing advice).
Example: Read the label before you wash it.
Another example: The label says '100% cotton'.
Collocations: price label · on the label · care label
Synonyms: tag, sticker, ticket
Word family: labels (n pl) · label (v)
⚠ Common mistake: Clothes labels itch at the neck since childhood. Food labels carry the nutrition facts modern shoppers read.
🗣 In spoken American English: 'Check the label' is the golden rule of laundry and allergies.
Register: Neutral — shopping basics.
Practice — Shopping: In the Store
Flashcards
Tap a card to flip it. Mark what you know — your progress saves on this device.
Matching Game
Tap an expression, then tap its meaning.
Keep going
Ad space