n.
supermarket
超市
Common Usage & Traps
- 去超市 — go to the supermarket
- 在超市买东西 — buy things at the supermarket
- 超市里 — inside the supermarket
- 大超市 — big supermarket (perfectly normal, not redundant)
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我买东西在超市。我在超市买东西。English parks the place after the verb. Chinese puts the 在-phrase in front of it, every time.
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我超市买东西。我去超市买东西。You can't just stack place and verb with nothing joining them. You need 去 or 在 to glue the trip together.
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去超市买。去超市买东西。Buying what? Hanging 买 at the end of a sentence sounds like you got cut off mid-thought.
Should I say 去超市买东西 or 在超市买东西?
去 means you're heading there. 在 means you're already standing inside.
去超市 marks the store as your destination, the place you're walking toward. 在超市 marks it as wherever your feet are at this exact moment. So 今天去超市买东西 means you're grabbing your keys and leaving. 我在超市买东西 means you're already pushing a cart past the frozen dumplings. Swap them and you either sound like you live at the store or like you're phoning in a grocery run from your sofa. “今天去超市买东西。” (Today I'm going to the supermarket to buy things.) ── [《这个苹果不是中国苹果》](/read/apples-from-two-places#s2)
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Heading out now | 我今天去超市买东西。 | 我今天在超市买东西。 (you're still at home) |
| Already inside, texting a friend | 我在超市呢，要带什么吗？ | 我去超市呢。 |
What's the real difference between 超市 and 商店?
A 超市 is a self-service supermarket. A 商店 is any shop, usually a small one.
超市 is literally "super market": aisles, a cart, a checkout, you pick your own stuff. 商店 is the generic bucket word for a shop, including the cramped one run by the guy downstairs who hands you things over the counter. Use 超市 for a real supermarket, 商店 for a small storefront. A giant shopping mall is 商场, which is a whole different animal with floors and escalators.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | 超市 (self-service supermarket) | 商店 (generic, usually small) |
| Weekly groceries | 去超市买菜。 | 去商店买菜。 (odd unless it's tiny) |
| Corner shop downstairs | 楼下的小商店。 | 楼下的小超市。 (unless it really is one) |
Do I need 里 in 我在超市里买东西?
No. For big places like 超市, 学校, and 银行, 里 is optional.
Once you say 在, Chinese already treats a big building as a container you're inside, so 我在超市买东西 and 我在超市里买东西 mean the same thing. Adding 里 just makes it a touch more explicit. But for small containers, 里 is not optional at all. 钥匙在包里 is fine. 钥匙在包 sounds like the key is sitting on the bag as a decoration.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Big public place | 我在超市买东西。 / 我在超市里买东西。 | 我超市买东西。 |
| Small container | 钥匙在包里。 | 钥匙在包。 |
| Where the phrase sits | 我在超市买东西。 | 我买东西在超市。 |
Appears in Stories 4 stories
Real context sentences across different daily scenarios and graded readings.
This short, simple story follows a shopper's trip to the supermarket to buy apples. You'll learn useful vocabulary for shopping, prices, and comparing things.
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今天白天的时候，我去我家这边的 超市 买东西。
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我看见 超市 有大苹果，也有小苹果。
This playful poem will make you smile as you explore how Chinese words like 'computer' and 'phone' can be funnier than they seem. Get ready to enjoy simple HSK 1 vocabulary and a twist of logic!
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超市 非常小，电脑没脑子，电话不能打。
Welcome! This short poem helps you practice the months, weekdays, and mealtimes in Chinese. Read it aloud and notice the rhythm. You already know many of these words!
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星期日和天，日日和爱人， 超市 买菜米，回家做饭忙。
In this easy story, you will follow a simple trip to the supermarket to buy apples. Practice numbers, question words, and nationalities in a real-life shopping context.
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今天去 超市 买东西。
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