Meaning & use
thrift store
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Meaning
nouncountable
A shop that sells used clothes, furniture and household goods cheaply, often to raise money for a charity.
Grammar: Countable: a thrift store, several thrift stores.
Patterns
- shop at a thrift store
- donate something to a thrift store
I found a warm winter coat at the thrift store for five dollars.
We took our old books to the thrift store on Saturday.
She decorates her apartment mostly with things from thrift stores.
Word forms
| plural | thrift stores |
|---|
Common combinations
- shop at a thrift store
- He likes to shop at a thrift store for vintage jackets.
- donate to a thrift store
- We donate unwanted clothes to the thrift store.
- local thrift store
- The local thrift store opens at nine.
- thrift store find
- The lamp was a great thrift store find.
- thrift store clothes
- Her thrift store clothes looked stylish.
Synonyms and how they differ
- charity shop
- Charity shop is the usual British term and always suggests money goes to a good cause, while thrift store may be run for profit.
- second-hand shop
- Second-hand shop is a neutral term for any store selling used goods and does not suggest a charity link.
- secondhand store
- Secondhand store is the plain description, while thrift store suggests low prices.
Word family
Commonly confused: thrift store or antique shop?
thrift store vs antique shop
An antique shop sells valuable old items at higher prices, while a thrift store sells cheap used goods.
Practice
I need cheap used furniture for my first apartment, so I will check the ___.
Choose one answer.
A thrift store sells cheap used goods like furniture. A jewelry store or bakery sells other things, and a bookkeeper is a person.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “thrift store”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.