Meaning & use
stocktake
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Meanings
nouncountableBritishbusiness
An official count of the goods or materials a business has, done to check records and value.
Grammar: Countable; often used with 'do' or 'carry out': do a stocktake.
Patterns
- do a stocktake
- carry out a stocktake
- annual stocktake
The shop closes early on the last day of the month for a stocktake.
We found several missing items during the annual stocktake.
The manager asked staff to prepare for the stocktake next week.
nouncountablefigurative
A review or assessment of a situation, especially to see what has been achieved or what needs to change.
Grammar: Countable; often used figuratively with 'take' or 'do': take a stocktake of something.
Patterns
- take a stocktake of something
- a stocktake of the situation
The team held a meeting to take a stocktake of the project's progress.
After six months, we did a stocktake of what had worked and what had not.
Word forms
| plural | stocktakes |
|---|
Common combinations
- annual stocktake
- The warehouse shuts down for the annual stocktake.
- do a stocktake
- We need to do a stocktake before the new stock arrives.
- stocktake sale
- The store is having a stocktake sale to clear old items.
Synonyms and how they differ
- inventory
- The usual American word for both the count and the goods themselves; stocktake is more common in British and Australian retail.
- stock check
- A general British term for checking stock levels; it can be less formal and less complete than a full stocktake.
Word family
- stocktake verb
- To carry out a stocktake; less common than the noun but used in business writing.
Commonly confused: stocktake or stock? stocktake or take stock?
stocktake vs stock
Stock refers to the goods themselves, while a stocktake is the act of counting or checking them.
stocktake vs take stock
This is a verb phrase meaning to review a situation; a stocktake is the noun for that review or for the shop count.
Practice
The supermarket will close for two hours to carry out a ______.
Choose one answer.
A 'stocktake' is the event of counting goods. 'Stock' is the goods themselves, 'stocking' is a different noun (a sock or the act of supplying), and 'take stock' is a verb phrase, not a noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “stocktake”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.