faire du shopping
To go shopping in French is faire du shopping.
faire du shopping is used to describe visiting stores to buy things for pleasure or leisure.
Which one should you use?
It is important to distinguish faire du shopping from faire les courses. While faire du shopping refers to shopping for pleasure, faire les courses is used specifically for buying necessities like food and household supplies.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the partitive article du, which is a contraction of de + le, meaning 'some shopping'.
Did you know?
- While faire du shopping is common, the verb magasiner is the standard term used in Canada. Using shopping in Quebec can sometimes be seen as an Anglicism to be avoided.
- The word faire inside the phrase shares an ancient ancestor with the English word 'fact', as both stem from the Latin 'facere', meaning 'to do' or 'to make'.
- The phrase faire les courses is used for groceries, but faire une course in the singular often means running a quick errand, like going to the post office.
Examples in context
- Elle adore faire du shopping.She loves to go shopping.This sentence shows how to express a personal preference for the activity.Tatoeba #12666931 by Olcyx, translation #2561574 by Hybrid
- Si tu as du temps, allons faire du shopping.If you have time, let's go shopping.This sentence is useful for suggesting the activity to someone else.Tatoeba #400599 by qdii, translation #400597 by CM
- Je lui ai dit une fois pour toutes que je n'irais pas faire du shopping avec elle.I told her once and for all that I wouldn't go shopping with her.This sentence illustrates how to use the phrase in a negative context.Tatoeba #6287731 by Aiji, translation #1396354 by CK
- Je vais aller faire des achats pour ma nouvelle maison.I am going shopping for my new house.
- On devrait aller faire du shopping ce weekend !We should go shopping this weekend!
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Chloé and Hugo are discussing their plans for the afternoon.
- ChloéTu veux faire du shopping avec moi ?Do you want to go shopping with me?
- HugoNon, je préfère lire un livre.No, I prefer to read a book.
- ChloéC'est dommage, j'adore faire du shopping.That's too bad, I love to go shopping.
- HugoAmuse-toi bien alors !Have fun then!
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries du, faire, shopping, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
