supermarket
Americannoun
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supermarkets
plural
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a large retail market that sells food and other household goods and that is usually operated on a self-service basis.
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any business or company offering an unusually wide range of goods or services.
a financial supermarket that sells stocks, bonds, insurance, and real estate.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of supermarket
Explanation
A supermarket is a store that sells groceries and other goods. Although supermarkets are primarily places to buy food, nowadays you can find everything from shampoo to toys to bestselling novels at a large supermarket. The distinguishing characteristics of a supermarket are that it sells food and household products, and that shoppers serve themselves, often pushing grocery carts and filling them with items. Though some people think of supermarkets as being much larger than grocery stores, others use the two terms interchangeably. This American-coined word first appeared in print in the early 1930s.
Vocabulary lists containing supermarket
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.
See Examples For:
“I’m aware of higher gas prices — how can you not be? And supermarket prices are insidious,” said Heideman, 67, who lives in Vermont.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026
The largest pure-play grocer in the U.S. by sales, Kroger was losing a hotly contested fight over groceries to Walmart and other rivals when the supermarket chain plucked Foran to steer a turnaround.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Aldi's UK boss has accused rival supermarket chains of duping customers in some cases with loyalty discounts that start with "unrealistically high prices" and then drop.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
Aldi is the only major supermarket chain that doesn't operate a loyalty scheme, which are used by millions of shoppers.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
We fill supermarket cases with their flesh, all slick and gleaming on heaps of ice.
From "The Thing About Jellyfish" by Ali Benjamin
FoodCycle collects surplus produce from supermarkets and uses it to prepare meals and provide groceries for families.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
They buy avocado harvests and other crops from farmers, and sell them on to supermarkets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
"Things that were in supermarkets and seen as relatively abundant may all of a sudden be in shortage," he adds.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
To understand people’s needs and preferences, Barnes said her team regularly follows shoppers through supermarkets and then home as they unload groceries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
Even if it was the middle of summer and so blazing hot outside that the road was melting, supermarkets were always freezing.
From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi
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.
