A Grocer Was Someone Who Sold in Bulk
A grocery is a food shop, and groceries are what you buy there. The word comes from selling by the gross, not by the item.
A grocery is a shop selling food and household goods; groceries are the goods themselves. The name records how the trade began: a grocer bought and sold *by the gross*, in bulk, unlike the retailers who sold single items. The wholesaler's name ended up on the corner shop.
- A shop selling food (mainly American). *The grocery on the corner.*
- Groceries — food shopping. *Help me carry the groceries.*
- Grocery as a modifier. *A grocery list.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | grocery | A small grocery. |
| Plural | groceries | Weekly groceries. |
| Person | grocer | The village grocer. |
| Adjective | grocery | Grocery prices. |
| British | greengrocer | The greengrocer's. |
How it is used in a sentence
- I need to do the grocery shopping.American phrasing; Britain says food shopping.
- The groceries are in the boot.Always plural for the goods.
- A greengrocer sells fruit and vegetables.The British specialist shop.
Food shops by name
- Grocer — general food and household goods
- Greengrocer — fruit and vegetables (British)
- Butcher — meat
- Fishmonger — fish
- Delicatessen — prepared and imported foods
From Anglo-French *grosser*, one who sells in gross, from Medieval Latin *grossarius*, from *grossus*, large. *Gross* meaning twelve dozen comes from the same word.
Grocery or supermarket?
A grocery is a shop of any size; a supermarket is large and self-service. American English often calls the supermarket the grocery store.
Why greengrocer?
Because the goods are green: fresh fruit and vegetables, as opposed to the dry goods a grocer once specialised in.