salesclerk

/ ˈseɪlzˌklɜːrk /

noun

1. a shop assistant Sometimes shortened toclerk

Example Sentences

Musical newcomers find some stores intimidating but the Tokyo store will be friendly, Fender says, with most salesclerks being women.

From Seattle Times

Four people were injured in the attack and a salesclerk, a security guard and a 2-year-old boy were killed.

From Seattle Times

Remaining in Florida for a time, he worked odd jobs, including a stint as a mannequin dresser at a Montgomery Ward department store, where he met Darlene Bennett, a salesclerk.

From New York Times

They were admiring how some of their dishes were displayed when a salesclerk told them the pieces were copies of those used by Marie Antoinette.

From New York Times

Last summer, my 20-year-old daughter was looking for new pants when the salesclerk described one pair as “very slimming.”

From Washington Post

More About Salesclerk

What does salesclerk mean?

A salesclerk is a person whose job is to help customers in a retail shop or to directly sell them products.

The word clerk can be used by itself to mean the same thing. As a job title or name of a position, clerk often implies that the person is an entry-level employee.

A salesclerk is sometimes a salesperson, but the term salesperson is more general and can refer to a person who sells goods or services for a company or who sells their own products, whereas a salesclerk always works in a store.

The term salesclerk is still used, but has been largely replaced with other terms, such as sales rep (or sales representative), sales associate, associate, or team member (the latter two of which perhaps avoid the use of the word sales to make the terms sound friendlier to customers).

Example: The salesclerk said that there weren’t any on the shelf but that she would check in the back.

Where does salesclerk come from?

The first records of the word salesclerk come from the 1930s. The word clerk is often used to refer to someone who keeps records, but in salesclerk it refers to an employee of a store or shop whose job is to help customers to make purchases or to sell them things. It’s used in much the same way in bank clerk, another term for a teller.

The term sales rep can be used as a synonym for both salesclerk and salesperson (as well as gender-specific terms like salesman and saleswoman).  Terms like salesgirl and shopgirl were once used as a way to refer to female salesclerks, but they are now often considered outdated and demeaning due to the use of the word girl when such workers are usually women.

Did you know ... ?

What are some synonyms for salesclerk?

• clerk
• sales rep
• salesperson

What are some words that share a root or word element with salesclerk? 

• sale
• clerk
• bank clerk

What are some words that often get used in discussing salesclerk?

• retail
• store
• shop
• counter
• customer
• commission
• product

How is salesclerk used in real life?

Salesclerk is less commonly used than it once was. Salesclerks now often have titles like associate.

If you want to know whether a person is really nice, observe the way that person treats salesclerks, waiters, & other people in service prof

— M A G I R I (@Kiganyi_) November 7, 2016

Human salesclerks shouldn't fret that robots will steal their jobs https://t.co/lSzFOmhJ3c pic.twitter.com/gpQFzBYQlW

— Ad Age (@adage) July 9, 2018

Aggressive Salesclerks Push Shoppers to the Web http://t.co/9eKvj912

— NYT Fashion (@NYTFashion) January 11, 2012

 

 

Try using salesclerk!

True or False? 

Salesclerk always means the same exact thing as salesperson.