Whenever I see the word shoppe included in the name of a store, I wonder why they’re using that word instead of the more easier, shop. Merriam-Webster says that shoppe is basically the same as shop and that its etymology is “Middle English shoppe“.
The pronunciation is the same for both shoppe and shop, though the extra two letters makes me want to pronounce the former, shop-ee, and then elongate the ee sound. Also, at some level, it mildly irritates me to see that word being used. (Yes, I’m aware that I need therapy.)
I’m unable to figure out why people choose to use the longer spelling when the shorter one works just as well and is acceptable, unlike SMS-speak which is not. My guess is that the people who are using the longer word are doing so just to be different. If that’s the case, then it’s not a particularly creative way of distinguishing oneself.
Whatt doo youu thinkk?
P.S. Today I passed by a store that had a sign with the word Shoppy in it. M-W doesn’t have an entry for that word: I checked just to be sure.
Ending in y is the new trend. For example Launchy, google wave robots (Polly, debuggy, stocky, tweety, bloggy, etc). This shop keeper is going to make ton of money when google wave wants to launch a shopping robot and has to buy rights for the name
It’s not just one shopkeeper though; I’ve seen many shops with such spellings. Plus, shoppy is a genuine English word, so maybe Google can rest easy.
Hi,
Me again.
It’s like using the word Suite instead of Room. I guess shoppe sounds fancier than shop but also a bit pretentious.
Another great looking (great content filed) blog.
Best,
Lauren
You may be on to something Lauren. Shoppe does sound fancier, just as suite does instead of room.