▪ I. ˈshopkeeping, n.
The keeping of a shop, the business of a shopkeeper.
| 1631 T. Powell Tom of All Trades 32 Little Skill, Art or Mystery, shall a man learne in Shop-keeping. 1753 Scots Mag. Aug. 374/2 If naturalized foreigners should set up shopkeeping. 1847 Grote Greece ii. xxxii. IV. 268 He advised Cyrus..to enforce upon them..habits of playing on the harp and shopkeeping. 1912 19th Cent. Jan. 61 His Majesty will make his rule in India a real government and not shop-keeping on the largest scale. |
▪ II. ˈshopkeeping, a.
[f. shop n. + keeping pr. pple. of keep v.]
Having the characteristics of a shop-keeper; pertaining to a shopkeeper's business.
| 1622 Rowlands Good N. & Bad N. 7 Her worship highly scorn'd shop-keeping trade. 1766 J. Tucker Four Tracts iii. (1774) 132 A Shop-keeper will never get the more Custom by beating his Customers: and what is true of a Shop-keeper, is true of a Shop-keeping Nation. 1769 Franklin Let. 27 Apr., Wks. 1838 VII. 441 This handicraft, shopkeeping state will, for its own sake, learn to behave more civilly to its customers. 1865 Sat. Rev. 7 Oct. 461/2 Nothing less suited than they are to the shopkeeping mind can be imagined. |