ENGLISH
REFERENCE

grocery

n. C / U
B2 Upper Intermediate Oxford US //ˈɡɹoʊsɝi// UK //ɡɹˈəʊsəɹi// gro·cery General-service

n. a store that sells food and small items for your home. In the plural form, it refers to the food and supplies you buy there.

n. a retail establishment primarily engaged in the sale of food and household supplies. When used in the plural, it refers to the commodities themselves.


SIMPLE

I need to stop at the grocery on my way home.

CONTEXTUAL

She spent nearly two hundred dollars on groceries to prepare for the family dinner this weekend.

COMPLEX

The local grocery has struggled to maintain its customer base since the opening of a massive supermarket chain just two blocks away.

Synonyms
Origin

From Middle English grocerye, equivalent to grocer + -y. Compare gross. Doublet of groceria.

Usage

Countable when referring to the shop itself; uncountable or plural when referring to the items purchased.

Pitfall

I bought many groceries itemsI bought many grocery itemsWhen used as a modifier before another noun, use the singular form 'grocery' rather than the plural 'groceries'.

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