shopping cart

noun

1
: a metal or plastic cart with four small wheels that is used for holding merchandise when shopping (as at a supermarket or department store)
… about the only amenities besides the jumbo-sized shopping carts are a few flatbed dollies to allow shoppers to get large appliances like refrigerators and washing machines to the cash register and then out to the parking lot.Jean Crichton
2
: a temporary record of items selected for eventual purchase from an online vendor's website
To set up shop on the Internet, you need a commerce-enabled Web site, which includes the electronic shopping cart; a connection to the credit card network; and finally, a merchant account …Tom Negrino
Delivery charges are the No. 1 reason shoppers abandon a virtual shopping cart, according to Jupiter Media Metrix. Every Internet shopper has a shipping-charge horror story.Ellen Neuborn

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Adding both to our shopping cart! Katie Bowlby, Country Living, 23 Apr. 2023 The formula, combined with a fair price, makes this lightweight serum an easy add to your rotation (and shopping cart). Kayla Blanton, Health, 14 Apr. 2023 Texas is big enough for more than one massive shopping cart. Ariana Garcia, Chron, 13 Apr. 2023 The musical instrument industry in general exploded during the pandemic because everyone’s at home with their Amazon shopping cart. Josh Chesler, SPIN, 5 Apr. 2023 Ruiz said Eaton was seen on video approaching the station while pushing a shopping cart. Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2023 Rodent droppings that showed a rat infestation and dead rats in traps; exposed electrical wires that could spark a fire; alleys and streets filled with litter and shopping carts loaded with belongings; homeless people sleeping on mattresses or sitting in alleyways and swales. Susannah Bryan, Sun Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2023 Remains of Baltimore Orioles Employee Missing Since October Found in Container Outside Church Rosa Chacon, 21, was found wrapped in a white sheet in a shopping cart in a Little Village alley last week, according to the news station. Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 24 Mar. 2023 Her body was also found in a Little Village alley, tied up and wrapped in a white sheet in a shopping cart, her family told WLS. Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 23 Mar. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shopping cart.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1934, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of shopping cart was in 1934

Dictionary Entries Near shopping cart

Cite this Entry

“Shopping cart.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shopping%20cart. Accessed 8 Jun. 2023.

More from Merriam-Webster on shopping cart

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!