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HSK 3

超市

supermarket

nounneutral
超
chāo1st tone
市
shì4th tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
chāoshì
Part of speech
noun
Level
HSK 3
Strokes
17
Register
neutral
Measure word
家 / 个

Stroke order for 超市

超市 is written with 17 strokes (超: 12, 市: 5). The animation replays automatically.

What does 超市 mean?

超市 (chāoshì) is the standard Chinese noun for a self-service supermarket — the modern store where you grab a basket and pay at a checkout.

It is a shortened form of 超级市场 (chāojí shìchǎng, 'super market'), and almost no one says the full phrase in daily life. 超市 covers everything from neighborhood chains like 沃尔玛 and 家乐福 to small 24-hour 便利店-sized branches.

Two things to note for English speakers: first, Chinese distinguishes 超市 (self-service, fixed prices) from the older 菜市场 (cài shìchǎng, open-air wet market where you bargain) and from 商场 (shāngchǎng, a department-store-style mall) — these are not interchangeable. Second, 超市 takes the measure word 家 because it is a business, not 个.

Character by character

超chāosuper; to exceed; to surpass
+
市shìmarket; city
=
超市

Memory hook: 超 (super) + 市 (market) = supermarket. The Chinese word is a direct calque of the English term.

Example sentences

我下班以后去超市买点东西。

Wǒ xiàbān yǐhòu qù chāoshì mǎi diǎn dōngxi.

I'll go to the supermarket to buy some things after work.

spoken

这家超市的水果很新鲜。

Zhè jiā chāoshì de shuǐguǒ hěn xīnxiān.

The fruit at this supermarket is very fresh.

neutral

周末超市里人很多。

Zhōumò chāoshì lǐ rén hěn duō.

On weekends there are a lot of people in the supermarket.

neutral

我家附近有一家大超市。

Wǒ jiā fùjìn yǒu yì jiā dà chāoshì.

There's a big supermarket near my home.

spoken

Common phrases with 超市

去超市qù chāoshìto go to the supermarket
逛超市guàng chāoshìto stroll around the supermarket
网上超市wǎngshàng chāoshìonline supermarket
大型超市dàxíng chāoshìlarge supermarket; hypermarket
超市购物chāoshì gòuwùsupermarket shopping

Synonyms

商店shāngdiàn

商店 is a general 'shop / store' — could be a clothing store, bookstore, or any small shop. 超市 is specifically a self-service grocery-style supermarket.

便利店biànlìdiàn

便利店 is a convenience store like 7-Eleven — small, 24-hour, limited selection. 超市 is bigger and stocked with full groceries.

Don't confuse 超市 with

市场shìchǎng

市场 is a 'market' in the broad sense — it can mean an open-air market, or abstractly 'the market' in economics (股票市场 stock market). 超市 is only the physical self-service supermarket.

商场shāngchǎng

商场 is a shopping mall or department store with many separate shops inside. 超市 is one single self-service grocery store, often located inside a 商场.

FAQ

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