mall

American  

[mawl, mal] / mɔl, mæl /

noun

1. Also called shopping mall.  a large retail complex containing a variety of stores and often restaurants and other business establishments housed in a series of connected or adjacent buildings or in a single large building.

2. a large area, usually lined with shade trees and shrubbery, used as a public walk or promenade.

3. Chiefly Upstate New York. a strip of land, usually planted or paved, separating lanes of opposite traffic on highways, boulevards, etc.

4. the game of pall-mall.

5. the mallet used in the game of pall-mall.

6. the place or alley where pall-mall was played.

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mall British  

/ mɔːl, mæl /

noun

1. a shaded avenue, esp one that is open to the public

2. short for shopping mall

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Etymology

Origin of mall

1635–45; the Mall, a fashionable tree-lined promenade in 18th-century London, where originally the game pall-mall ( def. ) was played; mell ²

Example Sentences

We didn’t have our own lingo and mall culture, like they did in the Valley.

From Los Angeles Times

Up next: A trip to the mall, where we stocked up on underwear, T-shirts, sunscreen, snacks and books to tide us over till Tuesday.

From The Wall Street Journal

Brianna Vasquez walked around a San Juan shopping mall Monday with her 13- and 7-year-old kids, trying to pass the time as they hoped for more affordable flights to open up.

From The Wall Street Journal

Traders in shopping malls near Tehran’s bazaar closed up their stalls, complaining they couldn’t earn enough to cover their bills.

From The Wall Street Journal

Footage posted on social media showed protests Monday at an upmarket mall near Tehran’s sprawling bazaar.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• market
• plaza
• shopping center
• shopping mall