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coffee shop

American  

noun

  1. a small, usually inexpensive, restaurant where refreshments and light meals are served.

coffee shop British  

noun

  1. a shop where coffee is sold or drunk

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of coffee shop

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40

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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 the Netanyahu case, conspiracy theorists pointed to an AI detection tool that falsely labeled his coffee shop video as "96.9 percent AI-generated."

From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026

Their first meeting in a coffee shop drew five people — the number Indivisible suggests a would-be organizer initially aim to marshal.

From Salon • Mar. 28, 2026

Learning that he “was not amenable to removal,” the agents dropped him off at a coffee shop without informing his attorneys or family.

From Slate • Mar. 19, 2026

Since the World Cup success, she has also opened a coffee shop with England and Gloucester team-mate Natasha Hunt.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

“No, my mom’s gonna get me from a coffee shop up the street.”

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.