Quick answer
Póngame medio kilo de jamón, por favor.
Half a kilo of ham, please. Póngame is the standard polite way to order at a counter.
The words
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| el carrito | the trolley |
| la cesta | the basket |
| la caja | the checkout |
| el pasillo | the aisle |
| la bolsa | the bag |
| el precio | the price |
| la oferta | the special offer |
| el kilo | the kilo |
| la carnicería | the meat counter |
| la pescadería | the fish counter |
| la panadería | the bakery |
| el ticket | the receipt |
| la caducidad | the expiry date |
| el descuento | the discount |
| la báscula | the scales |
The phrases you will actually say
Worth knowing
Two habits separate locals from visitors. First, in the fruit and vegetable section of most chains you weigh your own produce: you put the bag on the báscula, press the picture or code of the item, and stick the printed label on the bag. Arriving at the till with an unlabelled bag means being sent back across the shop. Second, the staffed counters run on a numbered ticket from a little dispenser, and standing in what looks like a queue without one achieves nothing, because the assistant calls numbers, not faces. Also expect to be asked ¿quiere bolsa? at the till: plastic bags are charged by law, and most shoppers bring their own.
Practice
Practise your supermarket words
0/8 matched — tap a Spanish word, then its translation
Check yourself
In the fruit section of most Spanish supermarkets, who weighs your produce?