Meaning & use
customer
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Meanings
nouncountablebusiness
A person or organization that buys goods or services from a shop or company.
Grammar: Countable: a regular customer, many customers.
Patterns
- a customer of something
- a customer at something
The cashier greeted each customer with a smile.
The bakery lost customers when it raised prices.
She is a loyal customer of the local bookstore.
nouncountableinformalold-fashioned
A person of a particular kind who is difficult or interesting to deal with.
Grammar: Informal and old-fashioned, with an adjective: a tough customer.
Patterns
- a tough customer
- an awkward customer
The goalkeeper is a tough customer to beat.
Watch out; he's a cool customer.
That dog is an odd customer, quiet but alert.
Word forms
| plural | customers |
|---|
Common combinations
- regular customer
- The barista knew each regular customer's order.
- customer service
- Customer service answered my question quickly.
- loyal customer
- Loyal customers get a discount.
- customer satisfaction
- The survey measured customer satisfaction.
- attract customers
- A big sign helps attract customers.
- customer base
- The company grew its customer base last year.
Synonyms and how they differ
- client
- Client suggests an ongoing professional relationship, as with a lawyer, whereas customer is for ordinary purchases.
- shopper
- Shopper describes someone browsing or buying in stores, but a customer is someone who buys from a particular business.
- patron
- Patron is more formal, and it suits restaurants, theaters or libraries.
- consumer
- Consumer is a general economic term for anyone who uses products, while customer links to a specific seller.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: customer or client? customer or costumer?
customer vs client
A client typically receives professional advice or service over time, while a customer buys goods or one-off services.
customer vs costumer
A costumer makes or supplies costumes, and it is not another spelling of customer.
Practice
A lawyer's regular professional contacts are usually called clients, while a shop's buyers are called ___.
Choose one answer.
Customers are people who buy goods from a shop; vendors are sellers, and lawyers and managers are not buyers.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “customer”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.