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Vocabulary practice · Episode 83

Review the useful expressions from the episode

Study the episode’s central expressions with English definitions, nuance and examples, plus reviewed support-language versions where available.

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A short study session

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  1. Choose one expression. Read its definition, nuance and examples.
  2. Make it yours. Write one true sentence from your own life.
  3. Return to the episode. Listen for the expression in its original context.

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Vocabulary from the episode

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Expression 1

aisle

a passage between rows of shelves in a supermarket, or rows of seats in a theatre or aircraft

Nuance: Aisle is one of those words that sounds completely different from how it looks — it rhymes with 'mile' ('ILE'). Essential supermarket vocabulary: 'Which aisle is the pasta in?' Pronounced incorrectly by many learners.

Excuse me, which aisle are the cereals in? — One of the most useful questions in any supermarket.

She walked up and down every aisle twice before she found the baking section.

Expression 2

self-checkout

a checkout machine in a supermarket or shop that allows customers to scan and pay for their items without a cashier

Nuance: Self-checkout is now standard in English-speaking supermarkets — and it produces its own vocabulary: 'unexpected item in bagging area', 'please wait for assistance'. Knowing these phrases removes the stress from a very common daily situation.

Use the self-checkout if you have fewer than ten items — it's usually much faster.

She found self-checkouts stressful at first but learned all the standard phrases and now prefers them.

Expression 3

to be on offer

to be available at a reduced price — on promotion or sale

Nuance: On offer is the British supermarket phrase for a sale or special deal. It appears on shelf tags, promotional signs, and supermarket apps. Common types: 'buy one get one free' (BOGOF), 'two for one', 'half price', 'three for two'. For English learners shopping in UK supermarkets, recognising and understanding these promotional phrases saves money and makes shopping more efficient.

Check what is on offer before doing your weekly shop — you can plan meals around reduced items.

She noticed the pasta was on offer at half price and bought three packs to stock up.

Expression 4

to pick up

to take or collect something — especially something small, in passing, or without particular ceremony

Nuance: Pick up (shopping sense) is the casual collection phrase. In supermarket English: 'I'll pick up some milk on the way home', 'Could you pick up bread while you're out?', 'I just need to pick up a few things'. It implies a quick, incidental purchase rather than a planned grocery trip. The phrase is extremely common in everyday English and worth having automatic for language learners.

Use 'pick up' for quick incidental purchases and 'do the shopping' for a full planned trip.

She offered to pick up some drinks from the supermarket on her way to the party.

Expression 5

the expiry date

the date printed on food or medicine packaging after which the product should not be used — because it may no longer be safe or effective

Nuance: Expiry date is the food safety noun. In UK supermarkets, two dates are used: 'best before' (quality may decline after this date but the product is still safe) and 'use by' (food should not be eaten after this date for safety reasons). Understanding this distinction is important practical English — 'best before' is guidance; 'use by' is a safety instruction.

Check the expiry date before buying anything that will not be used immediately.

She checked the expiry date on the yoghurt and chose the pack with the latest date to give herself more time.

Expression 6

to queue

to wait in a line of people — taking your turn in order rather than pushing ahead

Nuance: Queue is the British waiting noun and verb. In British culture, queuing is taken very seriously — jumping a queue is considered extremely rude. Phrases: 'join the queue', 'queue jump', 'there's quite a queue', 'the queue is moving'. For non-British English learners, understanding the cultural weight of queuing in the UK is as important as knowing the word itself.

Always join the end of the queue in the UK — queue-jumping is considered genuinely offensive.

She found a long queue at every checkout and decided to use the self-service machines instead.

Expression 7

a trolley

a large wheeled basket used in a supermarket to carry shopping — pushed by hand around the store

Nuance: Trolley is the British supermarket vehicle noun (American English: 'shopping cart'). Key phrases: 'grab a trolley', 'trolley park', 'return your trolley', 'trolley coin'. Many UK supermarkets require a coin to unlock a trolley, which is returned when the trolley is replaced. For English learners, this small practical vocabulary item matters for navigating a real UK supermarket.

Use a trolley for a big weekly shop — a basket is only practical for five items or fewer.

She grabbed a trolley at the entrance and worked her way methodically through the list she had prepared at home.

Expression 8

to do your weekly shop

to complete your regular, planned grocery shopping for the week — usually in a single supermarket trip

Nuance: Do your weekly shop is the British routine shopping phrase. It describes the full planned grocery trip — as opposed to picking up a few items incidentally. For most British households, the weekly shop is a planned event: writing a list, going to the supermarket, buying everything for the week. The phrase is used as a single unit: 'I need to do my weekly shop', 'Have you done the weekly shop?'

Do your weekly shop with a list — it saves money, time, and reduces food waste.

She did her weekly shop on Saturday mornings and found that planning meals in advance made it significantly cheaper.

Expression 9

loose change

small coins — kept on hand for minor purchases like parking, vending machines, or small transactions

Nuance: Loose change is the coins phrase. In everyday British English, 'have you got any loose change?' is a common question — whether from someone asking for charity, or you checking your own pockets before a transaction. Knowing this phrase and the related vocabulary — 'coins', 'small change', 'exact change' — is practical everyday English for navigating cash transactions.

Keep some loose change in your pocket — parking meters and market stalls often do not accept cards.

She rummaged through her bag for loose change to pay for the car park as the machine did not accept card payments.

Expression 10

to scan

to pass a product over a barcode reader — either at a staffed checkout or a self-service machine — so the system registers its price

Nuance: Scan is the checkout verb. At every modern supermarket checkout, items are scanned. At self-checkout: 'scan each item', 'the scanner did not register', 'scan your loyalty card'. Understanding the vocabulary of self-checkout — which is becoming universal — is increasingly important practical English for shopping in English-speaking countries.

Scan each item clearly and wait for the beep before placing it in the bagging area.

She scanned all her items without difficulty but the machine refused to accept the last one and she had to call for assistance.

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