store

As the sentence "This store stores a large store of rubber ducks" will tell you, store is a word with a lot of definitions. Among these are "a place that sells items," "the act of keeping things for future use," and "a supply of something."

As a noun, store often refers to a place where things are sold, such as an electronics store. This meaning of the word likely sprang up from the original meaning, "a supply of something kept for future use." As a verb, store refers to the act of putting things away for later. Chipmunks store nuts in their cheeks, people store their winter clothes when springtime arrives, and techies store information on backup drives.

Definitions of store
  1. noun
    a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services
    synonyms: shop
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    bakehouse, bakery, bakeshop
    a workplace where baked goods (breads and cakes and pastries) are produced or sold
    barbershop
    a shop where men can get their hair cut
    bazaar, bazar
    a shop where a variety of goods are sold
    betting shop
    a licensed bookmaker's shop that is not at the race track
    bodega
    a small Hispanic shop selling wine and groceries
    bookshop, bookstall, bookstore
    a shop where books are sold
    booth
    a small shop at a fair; for selling goods or entertainment
    boutique, dress shop
    a shop that sells women's clothes and jewelry
    building supply house, building supply store
    a store where builders can purchase materials for building houses and related structures
    butcher shop, meat market
    a shop in which meat and poultry (and sometimes fish) are sold
    canteen
    sells food and personal items to personnel at an institution or school or camp etc.
    chain store
    one of a chain of retail stores under the same management and selling the same merchandise
    cleaners, dry cleaners
    shop where dry cleaning is done
    clothing store, haberdashery, haberdashery store, mens store
    a store where men's clothes are sold
    commissary
    a retail store that sells equipment and provisions (usually to military personnel)
    computer store
    a store that sells computers to the small businessperson or personal user
    candy store, confectionary, confectionery
    a confectioner's shop
    convenience store
    a store selling a limited variety of food and pharmaceutical items; open long hours for the convenience of customers
    deli, delicatessen, food shop
    a shop selling ready-to-eat food products
    apothecary, apothecary's shop, chemist's, chemist's shop, drugstore, pharmacy
    a retail shop where medicine and other articles are sold
    florist, florist shop, flower store
    a shop where flowers and ornamental plants are sold
    gift shop, novelty shop
    a shop that sells miscellaneous articles appropriate as gifts
    hardware store, ironmonger, ironmonger's shop
    a store selling hardware
    head shop
    a shop specializing in articles of interest to drug users
    junk shop
    a shop that sells cheap secondhand goods
    hat shop, millinery
    shop selling women's hats
    outfitter
    a shop that provides equipment for some specific purpose
    liquor store, off-licence, package store
    a store that sells alcoholic beverages for consumption elsewhere
    loan office, pawnbroker's shop, pawnshop
    a shop where loans are made with personal property as security
    perfumery
    store where perfumes are sold
    pet shop
    a shop where pet animals can be purchased
    pizza parlor, pizza shop, pizzeria
    a shop where pizzas are made and sold
    fix-it shop, repair shop
    a shop specializing in repairs and maintenance
    beauty parlor, beauty parlour, beauty salon, beauty shop, salon
    a shop where hairdressers and beauticians work
    shoe shop, shoe store, shoe-shop
    a shop where shoes are sold
    specialty store
    a store that sells only one kind of merchandise
    second-hand store, thriftshop
    a shop that sells secondhand goods at reduced prices
    tobacco shop, tobacconist, tobacconist shop
    a shop that sells pipes and pipe tobacco and cigars and cigarettes
    toyshop
    shop where toys are sold
    charcuterie
    a delicatessen that specializes in meats
    garage, service department
    a repair shop where cars and trucks are serviced and repaired
    patisserie
    a bakery specializing in French pastry
    PX, post exchange
    a commissary on a United States Army post
    slop chest
    commissary maintained aboard merchant ships to sell merchandise to the crew
    slopseller's shop, slopshop
    a store that sells cheap ready-made clothing
    small stores
    personal items conforming to regulations that are sold aboard ship or at a naval base and charged to the person's pay
    sales booth, stall, stand
    a booth where articles are displayed for sale
    tuck shop
    a candy store in Great Britain
    type of:
    mercantile establishment, outlet, retail store, sales outlet
    a place of business for retailing goods
  2. noun
    a supply of something available for future use
    “he brought back a large store of Cuban cigars”
    synonyms: fund, stock
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    base, infrastructure
    the stock of basic facilities and capital equipment needed for the functioning of a country or area
    cache, hoard, stash
    a secret store of valuables or money
    provision
    a store or supply of something (especially of food or clothing or arms)
    government issue, issue, military issue
    supplies (as food or clothing or ammunition) issued by the government
    seed stock
    a supply of seeds (or tubers) reserved for planting
    seed corn, seed grain
    good quality seeds (as kernels of corn) that are reserved for planting
    type of:
    accumulation
    (finance) profits that are not paid out as dividends but are added to the capital base of the corporation
  3. noun
    a depository for goods
    synonyms: depot, entrepot, storage, storehouse
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    dump
    a place where supplies can be stored
    garner, granary
    a storehouse for threshed grain or animal feed
    magazine, powder magazine, powder store
    a storehouse (as a compartment on a warship) where weapons and ammunition are stored
    railhead
    a railroad depot in a theater of operations where military supplies are unloaded for distribution
    treasure house
    a storehouse for treasures
    storage warehouse, warehouse
    a storehouse for goods and merchandise
    crib
    a bin or granary for storing grains
    godown
    (in India and Malaysia) a warehouse
    type of:
    deposit, depositary, depository, repository
    a facility where things can be deposited for storage or safekeeping
  4. noun
    an electronic memory device
    synonyms: computer memory, computer storage, memory, memory board, storage
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    non-volatile storage, nonvolatile storage
    computer storage that is not lost when the power is turned off
    ROM, fixed storage, read-only memory, read-only storage
    (computer science) memory whose contents can be accessed and read but cannot be changed
    real storage
    the main memory in a virtual memory system
    scratchpad
    (computer science) a high-speed internal memory used for temporary storage of preliminary information
    virtual memory, virtual storage
    (computer science) memory created by using the hard disk to simulate additional random-access memory; the addressable storage space available to the user of a computer system in which virtual addresses are mapped into real addresses
    volatile storage
    computer storage that is erased when the power is turned off
    CD-ROM, compact disc read-only memory
    a compact disk that is used with a computer (rather than with an audio system); a large amount of digital information can be stored and accessed but it cannot be altered by the user
    EPROM, erasable programmable read-only memory
    (computer science) a read-only memory chip that can be erased by ultraviolet light and programmed again with new data
    flash memory
    nonvolatile storage that can be electrically erased and programmed anew
    magnetic bubble memory
    a nonvolatile storage device that holds information in the form of bubbles on a thin film of magnetic silicate; no longer used in most computers
    RAM, random access memory, random memory, random-access memory, read/write memory
    the most common computer memory which can be used by programs to perform necessary tasks while the computer is on; an integrated circuit memory chip allows information to be stored or accessed in any order and all storage locations are equally accessible
    type of:
    computer hardware, hardware
    (computer science) the mechanical, magnetic, electronic, and electrical components making up a computer system
    memory device, storage device
    a device that preserves information for retrieval
  5. verb
    keep or lay aside for future use
    “store grain for the winter”
    “The bear stores fat for the period of hibernation when he doesn't eat”
    synonyms: hive away, lay in, put in, salt away, stack away, stash away
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    bin
    store in bins
    computerise, computerize
    store in a computer
    victual
    lay in provisions
    accumulate, amass, collect, compile, hoard, pile up, roll up
    get or gather together
    hive
    store, like bees
    run up
    pile up (debts or scores)
    corral
    collect or gather
    collect, pull in
    get or bring together
    come up, scrape, scrape up, scratch
    gather (money or other resources) together over time
    chunk, lump
    put together indiscriminately
    bale
    make into a bale
    catch
    take in and retain
    fund
    accumulate a fund for the discharge of a recurrent liability
    fund
    place or store up in a fund for accumulation
    type of:
    hold on, keep
    retain possession of
  6. verb
    find a place for and put away for storage
    “I couldn't store all the books in the attic so I sold some”
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    garner
    store grain
    keep
    store or keep customarily
    mothball
    put into long-term storage
    reposit
    put (something) in a place for storage
    wharf
    store on a wharf
    tank
    store in a tank by causing (something) to flow into it
    loft
    store in a loft
    warehouse
    store in a warehouse
    garage
    keep or store in a garage
    bottle
    store (liquids or gases) in bottles
    ensile
    store in a silo
    type of:
    hold on, keep
    retain possession of
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