Shop
/ʃɒp/noun
A place where goods are sold or a small business that makes or repairs things.
Did you know?“Shop” comes from an Old English word for a stall or booth, ultimately tied to a Germanic root meaning a small shed or hut, not a mystical origin—but it still reveals how language preserves the architecture of vanished streets.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*skoppō / *skuppō
“a booth, shed, or stall”
Old English
OE
sceoppa
“a stall, booth, or shed”
Middle English
ME
shoppe
“a booth or small workshop; later a place of trade”
16th Century
English
shop
“a place where goods are sold or work is carried on”
Modern English
English
shop
“a retail store or place of business”