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ESL forum >
Ask for help > VOCABULARY QUESTIONS
VOCABULARY QUESTIONS
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Yolandaprieto
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VOCABULARY QUESTIONS
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What do you call in English those shops where you can find lots of different things of very low quality and cheap such as for example dustpans, brushes, buckets, small toys, etc.... In Spain they are Chinese shops because all or most of them are owned by Chinese people. They are very popular here and we are talking about shops and I want to prepare a bingo including this one if it exists in English.
Another question is; does "whimsical" mean a person who likes something and wants to have it as soon as possible or otherwise gets angry until he or she gets it? Of course it has a negative connotation. If not, is there any word that can be used to define this concept? (I am not talking about a spoilt child or a demanding one)
Thanks in advance for your kind help
Yolanda |
3 Mar 2011
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edrodmedina
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Hi Yolanda.. When I was a kid (ha llovido mucho desde entonces) they were called five and dime stores at least here in the states, some were called bargain stores. Now they are called Wal-mart...only kidding. What I see alot of now are dollar stores. I guess you can still call them bargain stores. Whimsical means devil may care, something or someone not too serious. A brat would fit the discription of the word you are looking for although it�s usually used with children. |
3 Mar 2011
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franknbea
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Hi Yolanda,
in the UK they are called pound shops because most things they sell are for one pound or less.
In the US they are called 99cents stores because a lot of the stuff they sell is under a dollar
In Portugal they used to be called " A Loja dos Trezentos" when the currency in Portugal was the Escudo, but I don �t know what they are called now
In Poland they are called Five Zloty shops for the same reasons as above.
I hope this helps |
3 Mar 2011
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edrodmedina
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LOL Frank...they �ve gone up a penny. |
3 Mar 2011
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gonabadesl
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hi dear duty free shop. isn �t it |
3 Mar 2011
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Aurore
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I �m an native speaker and often go back to England . In the Midlands we calll them pound shops. Hope it helps.
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3 Mar 2011
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Redbull
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@ Gonorrhea sorry Gonabadesl,
I wish it was duty free shops i �ll be flying everyday at those prices! Sorry for the miss spelt name  . redbull gives you wings you know  . |
3 Mar 2011
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HollyHirst
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Hey, I was thinking about the second question and maybe demanding or petulant would be a good word (the second only in the right context). Do you have a word in Spanish because I could probably translate it directly :) |
3 Mar 2011
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ueslteacher
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"whimsical" is someone extravagant, eccentric, or out of the ordinary in the way he/she dresses, acts. That �s my perception. Here �s a definition from the online dictionary: 1. Determined by, arising from, or marked by whim or caprice. See Synonyms at arbitrary.2. Erratic in behavior or degree of unpredictability: a whimsical personality. If we talked about food, I �d say "fussy eater". The other word is "picky"-- could be used in a different context. Sophia
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3 Mar 2011
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Jackie1952
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Hi,
I �m a native speaker too, and whimsical is definitely NOT someone who likes something and wants it as soon as possible. In fact, just at the moment I can �t bring to mind ONE English word that would encompass those two different concepts.
"Whimsical" in terms of somepne �s personality would mean someone who was:-
"playfully quaint or fanciful, especially in an appealing and amusing way" (Oxford English dictionary).
The definition of the noun "whimsy" is a thing that is fanciful or odd.
The type of person you mention could possible be avaricious, and petulant if he doesn �t get what he wants.
I �ll try to think of more later.
And I �d agree with the Pound Shop ideas.
Best wishes from Spain
Jackie
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3 Mar 2011
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mariamit
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I �m also a native (American ) English speaker. In the US they are called "99cents and up"stores
As to your second question I agree with Jackie. For me whimsical is someone who is playful and capricious in an amusing way. The person you describe I would call demanding, exigent or hard to please
Maria
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3 Mar 2011
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