shop window
/'ʃɔp'windou/
Definition
Noun: A shop window is a large window at the front of a store, facing the street or a public area. Its primary purpose is to display products or merchandise in an attractive way to entice potential customers to enter the store and make a purchase.
Usage
The term "shop window" is used to refer to the physical display area of a store. It is a compound noun. It is commonly used in British English; the American English equivalent is typically "store window."
Examples
- The new dress collection was beautifully arranged in the shop window.
- We stopped to look at the toys in the shop window.
- The bakery's shop window is always full of delicious-looking cakes and pastries.
Advanced Usage
- Figurative Use (Metaphor): "Shop window" can be used metaphorically to describe something that serves to showcase the best qualities of a person, organization, or place, often to create a favorable impression.
- Example: The new art gallery is a shop window for the city's creative talent.
- Idiom: "To have everything in the shop window": This idiom criticizes someone for being all show and no substance, or for revealing all their plans or abilities upfront, leaving nothing in reserve. It suggests superficiality.
- Example: Be careful in the negotiations; don't have everything in the shop window in the first meeting.
Variants and Related Words
- Store window (noun): The American English equivalent of "shop window."
- Display window (noun): A more formal term with the same meaning.
- Shopfront / Storefront (noun): Refers to the entire front exterior of a shop, including the window and entrance.
Synonyms
- Display window
- Showcase (can be used for both a physical glass case and a metaphorical display)
- Vitrine (a more formal term, often for a glass display case)
Related Phrases
- Window shopping: The activity of looking at goods in shop windows without intending to buy anything.
- Example: We spent the afternoon window shopping on the high street.
Noun
-
a window of a store facing onto the street; used to display merchandise for sale in the store
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