Shopping & Consumerism — Part 3
The Celpip Plus team
Written and reviewed against the official CELPIP scoring criteria
What you'll learn: the phrasal verbs shoppers use every day — "sell out of," "check out," "shop around" — so your CELPIP responses about buying and selling sound conversational and fluent.
Why phrasal verbs fit this topic so well
Shopping is one of the most phrasal-verb-dense topics in English, because the actions (checking out, trying on, stocking up) are everyday routines. CELPIP Listening passages about stores and customer service frequently use these forms, and reproducing them in Speaking shows you understand them actively, not just passively.
Shopping phrasal verbs
| Collocation | Meaning | Example sentence |
|---|---|---|
| sell out (of) | have no more stock left | The store sold out of the new phone within hours. |
| mark down (a price) | reduce a price, usually for a sale | Winter coats get marked down in early spring. |
| check out (at the till) | pay and leave the store | We waited ten minutes to check out during the rush. |
| try on (clothes) | put on clothing to see if it fits | I always try on shoes before buying them. |
| pay off (over time) | finish paying a debt gradually | It took a year to pay off the furniture I bought on credit. |
| stock up on (supplies) | buy a large amount for later use | We stocked up on groceries before the storm. |
| shop around | compare different stores before buying | It's worth shopping around before choosing a mattress. |
| rip someone off | overcharge or cheat someone | That vendor tried to rip off the tourists with inflated prices. |
| hand over (payment) | give money or a card to pay | I handed over my card and the cashier scanned it. |
| swap out (an item) | exchange one item for another | I asked to swap out the shirt for a larger size. |
| cash in (a voucher) | use a voucher for its value | You can cash in the voucher at any branch. |
| bump up (a price) | increase a price | Retailers often bump up prices right before a "sale." |
Worked example — CELPIP Speaking Task 2 (describing an experience)
Prompt: Describe a shopping experience where you got a great deal.
Last winter, I heard that a store near me was going to sell out of its winter jackets fast because everything was being marked down by fifty percent. I decided to shop around first just to make sure I wasn't getting ripped off, but the price really was the lowest I'd seen. I went in, tried on two jackets, picked the better one, and handed over my card at checkout. I also managed to cash in an old gift card I'd forgotten about, which knocked off another ten dollars. Honestly, it felt great to check out knowing I'd found such a good deal instead of paying full price somewhere else.
Common mistakes
- Saying "sold out the phones" instead of the correct preposition pattern sell out of something.
- Using "try clothes" instead of the full phrasal verb try on clothes — dropping "on" is a common learner error.
- Confusing pay off (finish paying a debt) with pay for (buy something) — different meanings entirely.
- Writing "check out from the store" — the natural phrasing is simply check out, no extra preposition needed.
Recap
You've now learned twelve shopping phrasal verbs, from sell out to bump up, that make your spoken and written English sound genuinely conversational. Part 4 moves into formal, written-register phrases for discussing consumer trends in CELPIP Writing Task 2.