often attributive
1
: a handicraft establishment : atelier
2
3
: a commercial establishment for the making or repair of goods or machinery
machine shop
repair shop
4
a
: a school laboratory equipped for industrial arts education
b
: the art or science of working with tools and machinery
shopped; shopping
1
a
: to examine goods or services with intent to buy
b
: to hunt through a market in search of the best buy
2
: to make a search : hunt
shopping around for a better idea
1
British
: to inform on : betray
2
: to examine the stock or offerings of
shop the stores for Christmas gift ideas
3
: to offer for consideration or acceptance
especially
: to offer for sale or in a trade
—often used with around
shopping the manuscript around
Synonyms
Examples of shop in a Sentence
Noun
I took the car to the shop to get new brakes.
I am taking shop this semester.
I made a table in shop.
The wood shop is down the hall.
Verb
Where do you like to shop?
I like to shop at locally owned stores.
She is shopping for a new car.
Many people now shop online.
She's shopping her idea for a film.
His own mother shopped him to the police.
Recent Examples on the Web
Anna Lee C. Iijima, Bon Appétit, 22 Jan. 2025
Hours after attending President Trump’s inauguration, Harris and former second gentleman Doug Emhoff landed at Burbank Airport and headed to a former auto repair shop in Altadena.
—Laura J. Nelson, Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2025
Cortne Bonilla, Vogue, 23 Jan. 2025
Drug addicts, homelessness and hawks April 25, 2023 Before the pandemic, downtown’s sidewalks often were crowded with office workers going out to eat, shop or take meetings in other buildings.
—Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 23 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for shop 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
For a growing segment of wine lovers today, the allure of wine isn’t the exclusivity or specificity outlined by traditional hierarchies or classifications, explains Oscar Salinas, co-owner of Los Naturales, a natural wine bar and bottle shop in Chicago.
—Anna Lee C. Iijima, Bon Appétit, 22 Jan. 2025
Hours after attending President Trump’s inauguration, Harris and former second gentleman Doug Emhoff landed at Burbank Airport and headed to a former auto repair shop in Altadena.
—Laura J. Nelson, Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2025
Verb
With Vogue First, readers and subscribers get exclusive access to shop the collaboration before anyone else!
—Cortne Bonilla, Vogue, 23 Jan. 2025
Drug addicts, homelessness and hawks April 25, 2023 Before the pandemic, downtown’s sidewalks often were crowded with office workers going out to eat, shop or take meetings in other buildings.
—Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 23 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for shop
Dictionary Entries Near shop
Cite this Entry
“Shop.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shop. Accessed 26 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shop
1 of 2 noun1
: a place of business : office
2
a
: a building or room where goods are sold retail
b
also shoppe
: a small store offering a specialized line of goods
a gift shop
3
: a place where workers are doing a particular kind of work especially with machinery
a print shop
4
a
: a school laboratory equipped for industrial arts education
b
: industrial arts
take shop as a freshman
metal shop
5
: shoptalk
talk shop
shop
2 of 2 verb
shopped; shopping
1
: to visit shops for the purpose of looking over and buying goods
2
: to look for the best buy
shop around for a new car
shopper
noun
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