Shopping vocabulary
English vocabulary to help you shop 'til you drop.
Use polite questions when shopping or helping a customer in a shop.
Private questions are asked with 'can' and 'may'. You can also ask for
advice in shops using 'should'.
Shopping for a Sweater
1. Can I help you?
2. Yes, I'm looking for a sweater.
1. What size are you?
2. I'm an extra large.
1. How about this one?
2. Yes, that's nice. Can I try it on?
1. Certainly, the changing rooms are over there.
2. Thank you.
1. How does it fit?
2. It's too large. Do you have a large?
1. Yes, here you are.
2. Thank you. I'll have it, please.
1. OK, how would you like to pay?
2. Do you take credit cards?
1. Yes, we do. Visa, Master Card and American Express.
2. OK, here's my Visa.
1. Thank you. Have a nice day!
2. Thank you, goodbye.
Key Vocabulary Can I help you?
Can I try it (them) on?
size - extra small, small, medium, large, extra large
How does it fit?
changing rooms
How would you like to pay?
credit cards
Types of shops in English
department store – a shop that sells many different items in different
departments. Harrods is probably the world's best known department
store.
supermarket – a large shop that sells mostly food and household items.
grocer (UK) / grocery store (US) – a shop that sells food.
greengrocer – sells fresh fruit and vegetables.
butcher - sells fresh meat.
baker – sells fresh bread and cakes.
fishmonger – sells fresh fish.
chemist (UK) / drugstore (US) – sells medicines and toiletries.
pharmacy (US) – sells medicines.
newsagent - sells newspapers and magazines.
stationer – sells paper goods.
optician – sells glasses / contact lenses.
DIY store – sells things for home improvement.
hardware shop / hardware store / ironmonger – hard goods, such as nails
and screws.
corner shop (UK) – a shop on the corner of your street, selling a range of
basic goods – food, newspapers, sweets, bread, etc.
delicatessen (deli) – sells specialist food not normally found in
supermarkets. For example, an Italian deli, an Asian deli.
bookshop / bookstore – books.
market – market traders (people who work on a market) have stalls that
sell fruit and vegetables, clothes, household items and so on.
petshop - for pets and pet food.
flea market – a group of stalls selling old furniture or clothes.
tea shop (UK) – like a cafe, but sells tea and cakes.
petrol station (UK) / gas station (US) sells petrol, car products and
sometimes food.
Using 's
When we talk about shops, we often put an 's on the end. For example,
"I'm going to the chemist's / greengrocer's / butcher's / baker's /
newsagent's / fishmonger's / optician's."
We don't use an 's with these shops: supermarket, hardware store, petrol
station, department store.
Sales vocabulary
December 26 (or Boxing Day) is traditionally the start of the winter sales
in the UK, when items are heavily discounted. In fact, bargain
hunters can find some items reduced up to 50% off their pre-sale price.
An unbeatable offer / prices slashed (= cut) or give-away prices mean
very low prices.
Clearance Sale / Everything must go! = signs in shop windows advertising
the sales
snap up a bargain = to buy something cheaply
Asking for things
"Do you have any…?"
"I'm looking for…"
"I wonder if you could help me…?"
What the shopkeeper says
"I'm sorry, we're out of stock."
"I'm sorry, that's the last one."
"I'm sorry, that's all we have left."
What a sales person says
"Can I help you?"
"Are you looking for anything in particular?"
Your reply
"I'm just looking, thank you."
"I'm just browsing, thank you."
Asking about things
"Do you have this in another size?"
"Do you have this in another colour?"
"Is this made of leather / silk / plastic…?"
"Does this come with a guarantee?"
"Is this fully refundable?"
"Can I bring this back if it's not the right size?"
"Can I bring this back if it doesn't fit?"
Paying – what the shopkeeper says
"Do you have anything smaller?" (If you pay with a large denomination
note.)
Paying – what you say
"I'm sorry, I don't have any small change."
"I don't have anything smaller."
"Would you have change for this?"
"Can I have the receipt, please?'
"Can I pay by credit card?"
"Can I pay in cash?"
"Is this on sale?"
More help with shopping vocabulary and phrases
Here are some useful speaking exercises to help you when you go
shopping. You can listen to the conversation, record your sentences, then
compare your recording with the original.
Replying to a sales assistant
Asking questions in a shop
Buying presents
Selling something - Speaking Activity
1. Say hello and welcome the clients.
2. Introduce yourself.
Who are you?
What do you do?
3. Introduce your company
What’s its name?
Where is it from?
What does it sell/provide/produce?
4. Introduce your service or product
Ask questions to the clients
Simple present for routines
Present continuous for this moment
Why is your product/service the best?
Say its Price or the discounts you have.
Two or three sentences with its characteristics and adjectives.
Compare it to other products or services.
5. Say thank you and give your contacts.
Being Polite
Look at these pictures… What are they about?
Reasons to be polite:
(1) social distance between speaker and listener (including age, gender, etc.);
(2) power relations between speaker and listener;
(3) conversation setting;
(4) conversation topic;
(5) degree of imposition (for requests);
(6) severity of offense (for an apology)
10 levels of politenes
Imagine the scene: a young couple arrive home after a long day at work.
One of them is hungry. There are many different ways to get what you
want in English, but being polite will probably be the most effective way.
But how polite should you be? Look at the following levels of politeness,
and decide which level is the most acceptable:
↑ MORE DIRECT ↑
1. “Dinner!”
2. “Make dinner!”
3. “Make dinner, please.”
4. “Can you make dinner, please.”
5. “Could you make dinner, please.”
6. “Could you possibly make dinner, please.”
7. “Could you possibly make dinner, please, if you have time.”
8. “Could you possibly make dinner, please, if you have time – if you don’t
mind.”
9. “I was wondering whether you could possibly make dinner, please, if
you have time – if you don’t mind.”
10. “Sweetheart – I was wondering whether you could possibly make
dinner, please, if you have time – if you don’t mind.”
↓ MORE POLITE ↓
Answer: Level 5 or 6 would be fine in this situation, while Levels 1-3 are
too direct. In general, English ears hate to hear the imperative voice
(giving orders). Levels 7-10 are maybe too polite and too formal for a
young couple who know each other well. As you can see, the more words
and clauses in the sentence – and especially the more modal verbs – the
more polite it becomes.
Watch the videos
1. Yes and No –Knowing how to say yes or no politely is very important.
2. Asking Permission – Unfortunately, asking permission can sound accusing
or demanding if not done properly. This video gives some good pointers.
3. Saying sorry - 5 ways to say sorry and the right answers.
4. Want vs. Would Like (Extra) – Important for requests, especially when
you are requesting action from a colleague or associate.
5. Softening the Message (Extra) – The right amount of indirectness is
important for English speakers. Too direct, and you will be considered rude and pushy;
not direct enough, and you won't be understood. This video talks about how to soften
the directness of a message.
Other politeness strategies.
1. Cautious language: Er, could you, er, perhaps, close the, um , window?
2. Pessimism: I don't suppose you could close the window, could you?
3. Indicating deference: Excuse me, sir, would you mind if I asked you to
close the window?
4. Apologizing: I'm terribly sorry to put you out, but could you close the
window?
5. Impersonalized: The management requires all windows to be closed.
Let’s practice the hot seat
Ask things politely to the one on the hot seat… he/she must say NO politely
