a sachet

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   a small sealed bag or packet that holds a single portion of something, such as sauce, sugar, or shampoo

   Grammar: Countable; use 'a' or a number before it, and 'of' before the contents: a sachet of ketchup.

   Patterns

   • a sachet of something
   • sachets of something

   The waiter brought a sachet of mayonnaise with my sandwich.

   She keeps a few sachets of sugar in her bag for coffee on the go.

   This shampoo comes in a small sachet, perfect for travel.

2. 2nouncountable

   a small bag filled with a scented substance, used to make clothes or a room smell pleasant

   Grammar: Countable; often used in the plural when talking about several bags: scented sachets.

   Patterns

   • a scented sachet
   • a sachet of lavender

   She hung a lavender sachet in her wardrobe to keep the clothes smelling fresh.

   The drawer was filled with little sachets of dried flowers.

Word forms

Common combinations

a sachet of sauce

He squeezed the sachet of sauce onto his chips.

a sachet of sugar

Could I have a sachet of sugar for my tea?

a shampoo sachet

The hotel provides a shampoo sachet in each room.

a scented sachet

She bought a scented sachet for the car.

Synonyms and how they differ

packet

Packet is the more general and common word for a small paper or plastic container; sachet is more specific and often used for liquids or single servings.

pouch

Pouch can mean a small bag, often one that can be resealed; sachet usually cannot be resealed and holds one portion.

Commonly confused: a sachet or sashay?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “a sachet”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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