shop
/ʃɑp/noun, verb, interjection
shop is spelled S-H-O-P: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 76 times per million words in written English, the 1,394th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, shop means “An establishment that sells goods or services to the public; originally only a physical location, but now a virtual establishment as well” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of shop is shops.
How many letters and syllables are in shop?
| Letters | 4: S-H-O-P |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 76 times per million words; the 1,394th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is shop?
Shop appears 76 times per million words in written English, the 1,394th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shop?
- UK /ʃɒp/
- US /ʃɑp/
Shop has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-shop.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with shop?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as shop from its last stressed vowel (/ɑp/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: posh, soph.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of shop
- shops plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- shopping participle, present
- shopped participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shop mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An establishment that sells goods or services to the public; originally only a physical location, but now a virtual establishment as well.
- 2
A place where things are manufactured or crafted; a workshop.
- 3
A large garage where vehicle mechanics work.
The car's in the shop right now.
- 4
Workplace; office. Used mainly in expressions such as shop talk, closed shop and shop floor.
- 5
Discussion of business or professional affairs.
- 6
A variety of classes taught in junior or senior high school that teach vocational skills.
- 7
An establishment where a barber or beautician works.
a barber shop
- 8
An act of shopping, especially routine shopping for food and other domestic supplies.
This is where I do my weekly shop.
verb
- 1
To visit stores or shops to browse or explore merchandise, especially with the intention of buying such merchandise.
Why don’t you come shopping for gifts with me, early before the Christmas rush?
- 2
To browse or purchase products from (a catalog, an internet website, etc.), mostly from home.
Shop our new arrivals.
- 3
UKslangTo report the criminal activities or whereabouts of someone to an authority.
He shopped his mates in to the police.
- 4
UKslangTo imprison.
- 5
To photoshop; to digitally edit a picture or photograph.
- 6
archaicslangTo dismiss from employment.
- 7
colloquialTo investigate or evaluate as a mystery shopper.
A grocery clerk who, after he had been "shopped" on occasions, was discharged because he had admitted that on one occasion he had not rung up a sale immediately after the transaction, as required by the company rule, but had recorded it lat
- 8
To pitch (a book, script, etc.) to a publisher or studio.
interjection
- 1
datedUsed to attract the services of a shop assistant
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shop in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | boutique, magasin , atelier , faire les magasins, faire du shopping, faire les courses |
| German | Laden, Geschäft, Ladengeschäft, Ladenlokal , Werkstatt , einkaufen |
| Portuguese | loja, bazar , oficina , ir às compras |
| Spanish | tienda, negocio, comercio, almacén , taller , ir de compras |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shop come from?
From Middle English shoppe, schoppe, from Old English sċoppa (“shed; booth; stall; shop”), from Proto-Germanic *skupp-, *skup- (“barn, shed”), from Proto-Indo-European *skub-, *skup- (“to bend, bow, curve, vault”). Cognate with Dutch schop (“shed”), German Schuppen (“shed”), German Schober (“barn”), French échoppe (“booth, shop”) (< Germanic). The verb is denominal. The noun senses “act of shopping”, “purchased items” are backformed from the verb.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).