corner store

American

[kawr-ner stawr] / ˈkɔr nər ˈstɔr /

noun

a small grocery or convenience store that stocks snacks, food staples, household and sanitary items, tobacco products, soft drinks and alcoholic beverages, and sometimes deli items, prepared foods, or a limited selection of fresh produce.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

corner stores

plural

Etymology

Origin of corner store

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"In my shop everybody talks about this all the time," said Maelie Misidor, who runs a small corner store in the neighborhood.

From Barron's • Jun. 18, 2026

“When they get into it, you have to close up everything,” said Yasmin Sánchez, 40 years old, who works at her family’s corner store.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 18, 2026

Stambor said the decision to shut down Amazon Go locations — Amazon’s play on a corner store — as well as its Amazon Fresh grocery outlets wasn’t a surprise.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 27, 2026

When I’m dreaming up new oatmeal combinations, I start where any self-respecting hedonist would: the jam aisle of a fancy little corner store.

From Salon • Nov. 13, 2025

I asked again, wanting her to stop the washing and perhaps take me to the corner store for an icy pop.

From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023