shopping center — mall
collocationB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
A large building or group of connected buildings with many different shops, restaurants, and sometimes entertainment, where people go to shop and spend time.
Say it like a native
Textbook I am going to the commercial retail complex.
Native I'm popping to the shopping centre.
Nobody says 'commercial retail complex'; it's 'the shopping centre' (BrE) or 'the mall' (AmE).
Pattern: shopping center (noun)
In use
- We spent the afternoon at the shopping center, browsing different stores and having lunch.daily life
- I usually go to the shopping center on weekends because it has a wide variety of shops and a nice food court.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ I went to the shopping centre for buy clothes.
✓ I went to the shopping centre to buy clothes.
'To buy' (purpose), not 'for buy'.
Common collocations
go to the shopping centre— local, new, huge, go to
Don't confuse it
'Shopping center' refers to a group of shops, not just one store.