Chinese Conversation · Level 21
90 words
Chinese word
超市
Pronunciation
Pinyinchāo shì
Meaning
- nounsupermarket
Example
去超市买菜比较方便。qù chāo shì mǎi cài bǐ jiào fāng biàn
Going to the supermarket to buy vegetables is more convenient.
More examples
超市的营业时间一般很长。chāo shì de yíng yè shí jiān yì bān hěn cháng
The supermarket's business hours are usually long.
Core concept
A large self-service store where shoppers choose food and household goods from aisles and pay at fixed checkout counters.
Common phrases
在超市买东西zài chāo shì mǎi dōng xī
buy things at the supermarket
在超市排队结账zài chāo shì pái duì jié zhàng
wait in line to pay at the supermarket
超市前面chāo shì qián miàn
in front of the grocery store
Similar words
商店shāng diàn: A fairly small shop selling everyday goods and food.
市场shì chǎng: A place where shops and stalls gather for people to buy goods directly.
菜市场cài shì chǎng: A market of stalls and small shops selling mainly fresh food such as vegetables and fruit.
便利店biàn lì diàn: A small shop with long opening hours selling drinks and small amounts of everyday goods.
Definition in Chinese
指为顾客提供大量食品、日用品等自选商品，并由固定收银台结算的大型零售场所。zhǐ wèi gù kè tí gōng dà liàng shí pǐn rì yòng pǐn děng zì xuǎn shāng pǐn bìng yóu gù dìng shōu yín tái jié suàn de dà xíng líng shòu cháng suǒ
Word origin
超市 (chāoshì, "supermarket") is a shortened form of 超级市场 (chāojí shìchǎng, "supermarket"), a name that joins the idea of something very large with a place for buying and selling.
Usage tips
- For English-speaking learners, the useful pattern is that Chinese often places this location noun directly after the verb meaning "go", whereas English normally uses "to" before "supermarket".
Other meanings
- grocery storenoun
Related words
- 大型超市dà xíng chāo shìlarge grocery storenoun
- 生鲜超市shēng xiān chāo shìfresh-produce supermarketnoun