Shopping vocabulary

1. Transaction i.e. buying and selling

• To be on sale (adjective phrase): Sometimes shop keepers purposely reduce the price of the product to attract more customers. When this happens, we say that the products are on sale.

Example: Is there anything on sale? I don’t have much money left.
Example: This pair of shoes is on sale, 50% off.

• Price/Cost (noun): you probably already know these words. Here are some ways that you can use them.

Example: How much does it cost?
Example: What’s the price for 3 cartons of milk?

• Pay (verb): you already know the word pay so here are some ways in which you can pay for something.

Pay by cash is to pay with actual money directly.
Pay with Credit/Debit card is to use your bank-issued plastic card to pay. A credit card lends you some money, which needs to be paid back to the bank later. A debit card directly links to your bank account.

• Taxes (noun): Have you noticed that when you buy something for 15 dollars, you may actually need to pay more than 15 dollars. This is because the government has imposed some taxes upon that product. There are two types of prices: taxes incl. (included) or taxes not included.

If the price is taxes incl. you only have to pay for what is listed on the price tag.
If it is taxes not include, well, you need to pay for what’s listed and for taxes as well. Be careful!

• Discount (noun): While a sale is something that the seller organizes, a discount is something that you need to ask for. For example, if your jacket has a small scratch, you may ask for a discount. Or if you want to buy 10 pair of shoes at the same time, you may also ask for a discount.

Example: I know this shirt is not on sale but can I get a discount if I buy 5 of them?

2. Making it your own

• Style (noun): you already know how important the style of a product is. You can use kind or type to mean the same thing.

Example: What type of pants do you like?
Example: Do you think this style suits me?
Example: This store doesn’t have the kind of jackets that I need.

• Size (noun): there are many ways to measure the size of a product, either by number or by letter. Depending on the metric system that your country uses, you can be wearing size 8 for your shoes or size 42. Using letters such a S, M and L is common too. S stands for small, M for medium and L for large. If you see XS, it means extra small, or even smaller than small.

Example: Do you have a size L shirt of the same style?

• Color (noun): or colour in British English. Some people prefer to wear monochromatic clothing, which means clothes that have only one color. The prefix mono means one and the root chromatic means color.

Example: Are these products available in any other color? I hate black.

3. The base products

While you can change the style, size or color of a product, you are not likely to change its features and benefits.

• Feature (noun): a feature is something that the product has. For example, a feature of a car is its brakes or a feature of a cup is the handle.

Example: I would like to know more about this car’s features.
Example: There are many useless features in this fridge. I just need a durable one please.
Tip: You can use feature as a verb to mean to have something. For example: This camera features the latest technology in noise reduction.

• Benefit (noun): a benefit is something that is good for you. You may hear the salesman talking about a lot of modern features on a product but you do not really understand how they are going to help you. If so, you may ask “What are the benefits of using this product?”

Example: There are many benefits of drinking water regularly.
Tip: It can also be used as a verb to mean to be good for something. For example: How does this TV benefit me?

4. After you have bought it

Even when you have had a good deal and bought something on sale, you must not leave the shop without these 3 things:

• Warranty (noun): sometimes when you buy an expensive product like a laptop or a TV, the manufacturer issues a warranty. A warranty is a promise that, within a certain amount of time, if anything is wrong with the product, the manufacturer will fix it for you, for free.

Example: Does this have a warranty? I paid five thousands for it.
Tip: You can ask if something is still in warranty to check if the company still offers to fix it for free.

• Return policy (noun): while the warranty is from the manufacturer i.e. who actually make the product, a return policy is issued by the store or the one who is selling the product. Some store may have a return policy which states that you will exchange a new product for you if the old one spoils, for example.

Example: I’m sorry but we have no return policy. You need to bring your microwave to the manufacturer.

• Receipt (noun): a receipt is a proof that you have paid money for something. On your receipt, you will see the price, the date of purchase, If you do not have a receipt to prove that you own the product, there’s no warranty nor return policy for you!

Example: Can you show me the receipt? I need it to process your warranty claim.



In conclusion, we have learned about 4 steps of shopping. You start by studying the features and benefits of a product. Then, you choose the suitable style, size and color for your own usage. You can make a purchase by paying by cash or paying with credit/debit cards. You may even get a good deal if the product is on sale or if you ask for a discount. Finally, before leaving the store, remember to ask about the warranty and the return policy and DO NOT lose your receipt.