bakery

IPA/ˈbeɪkəri/
KK[bˈekɚi]IPA/ˈbeɪkəri/

bakery — noun

  • bakerysingular
  • bakeriesplural

1. a shop or business that bakes bread, cakes, and similar food, and often sells th

1.nounB2
Definition

a shop or business that bakes bread, cakes, and similar food, and often sells them there too

Example

Every morning, the bakery on Pine Street sells warm cheese buns.

bakery + sell baked food

By six o'clock, fresh bread filled the bakery with a sweet smell.

Common collocations
  • local bakery
  • small bakery
  • family bakery
  • bakery counter
  • bakery window
Synonyms
  • baker's shop

    close in meaning, especially in British English

  • pastry shop

    narrower; it focuses more on sweet baked goods

  • bakehouse

    more about the place where baking is done than the retail shop

  • store

    much broader and does not suggest baking on the premises

Grammar Patterns

go to the bakery

work in a bakery

buy bread at the bakery

Usage Note

Usually countable. It can refer both to the customer-facing shop and to the place where the baking work is done.

Common Mistakes

My aunt owns a baker.
My aunt owns a bakery.
baker is the person; bakery is the shop or business.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

For this sense, bakery is the normal general word for a place that makes or sells bread, cakes, and other baked food. Baker's shop is very close in meaning, but it sounds more British and can feel slightly more traditional. Pastry shop is narrower because it makes learners think first of pastries, cakes, and sweets rather than everyday bread. Cafe is different again: a cafe mainly serves drinks and light meals for people to sit and eat there, even if it also sells cakes. If you bought a loaf and left, bakery fits best. If you sat down for coffee and a bun, cafe may be the better word.

bakery ↗baker's shoppastry shopcafe ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • bakery owner
  • bakery worker
  • bakery window
  • bakery counter

Phrases

  • go to the bakery
  • open a bakery
  • work at a bakery
  • buy bread from the bakery

Prepositions

  • at the bakery
  • from the bakery

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishEnglish

Bakery was formed in English from baker with the ending -y, which can name a place connected with a job or activity. Baker comes from an old English word linked to bake, so bakery literally means a place connected with baking or with a baker.