auto shop

Meanings

1. 1nouncountableAmerican

   A place where cars are repaired and serviced.

   Grammar: Countable: you can say an auto shop, two auto shops.

   Patterns

   • take a car to the auto shop
   • work at an auto shop

   I need to take my car to the auto shop because the brakes are making a noise.

   The auto shop on the corner fixed the engine in one afternoon.

   He works at an auto shop and can check your tires for free.

2. 2nouncountable or uncountableAmerican

   A school class or course where students learn to repair cars.

   Grammar: Often used without an article as a school subject: I have auto shop next period.

   Patterns

   • take auto shop
   • teach auto shop

   In high school, she took auto shop and learned how to change a tire.

   The school's auto shop program lets students work on real cars.

   He signed up for auto shop because he wanted to understand how engines work.

Word forms

Common combinations

take your car to the auto shop

You should take your car to the auto shop before the long drive.

a local auto shop

A local auto shop offered to replace the battery for a low price.

auto shop class

My cousin is in auto shop class this semester.

Synonyms and how they differ

garage

The usual British word for a car repair business; in American English a garage is more often a private parking building.

repair shop

A general term for any repair business; it does not say what is repaired unless you add 'car'.

mechanic's

Informal and refers to the person's workplace rather than the building itself.

Word family

auto noun

Informal American word for a car.

automotive adjective

Relating to cars and engines, as in the automotive industry.

Commonly confused: auto shop or car dealership?

Practice

Make it your own

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

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