Толковый словарь английского языка

[Word Family: noun: ↑consumption, ↑consumer; verb: ↑consume]

someone who buys and uses products and services ⇨ consumption, producer:

Consumers will soon be paying higher airfares.

It will offer a wider choice of goods for the consumer (=consumers in general).

Consumer demand led to higher imports of manufactured goods.

Consumer spending was down by 0.1% last month.

sources of consumer advice

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COLLOCATIONS

■ consumer + NOUN

▪ consumer goods/products (=things that people buy for their own use) Our demand for consumer goods increases all the time.

▪ consumer demand (=the demand for things to buy) Consumer demand decreased as a result of the recession.

▪ consumer spending (also consumer expenditure formal) Higher taxes will reduce consumer spending.

▪ a consumer group (=an organization that protects consumers’ rights) There have been complaints from consumer groups about the high prices charged by some companies.

▪ consumer prices Consumer prices rose 3.26% in December.

▪ consumer choice Competition between businesses leads to more consumer choice.

▪ the consumer market (=the people who buy consumer goods) Our advertising is aimed at teenagers because they are our main consumer market.

▪ a consumer society (=a society of people who want to buy a lot of things) In the west, we live in a consumer society.

▪ consumer durables British English (=things you buy that are expected to last, such as cars, televisions, or furniture) Ownership of consumber durables is a reflection of standards of living.

▪ consumer debt (=money people owe because they buy too much) the growth in consumer debt

▪ a consumer boom (=a time when people spend a lot more money on buying things than usual) the consumer boom of the 1980s in Britain

■ adjectives

▪ the biggest/largest consumer of something The US is the world’s biggest oil consumer.

▪ the average consumer The average consumer has become more price conscious.

▪ a domestic consumer (=one that buys in the country where something is produced) Demand from domestic consumers is increasing.

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THESAURUS

▪ customer someone who buys goods or services from a shop or company: Customers were waiting for the shop to open. | The bank is one of our biggest customers.

▪ client someone who pays for a service from a professional person or company: He has a meeting with one of his clients. | The company buys and sells shares on behalf of their clients

▪ shopper someone who goes to the shops looking for things to buy: The streets were full of Christmas shoppers.

▪ guest someone who pays to stay in a hotel: Guests must leave their rooms by 10 am.

▪ patron /ˈpeɪtrən/ formal a customer of a particular shop, restaurant or hotel – usually written on signs: The notice said ‘Parking for Patrons Only’.

▪ patient someone who is getting medical treatment from a doctor, or in a hospital: He is a patient of Dr Williams.

▪ consumer anyone who buys goods or uses services – used when considering these people as a group who have particular rights, needs, or behaviour: Consumers are demanding more environmentally-friendly products. | the rights of the consumer | The law is designed to protect consumers who buy goods on the Internet.

▪ market the number of people who want to buy a product, or the type of people who want to buy it: The market for organic food is growing all the time. | a magazine aimed at the youth market

▪ clientele /ˌkliːənˈtel $ ˌklaɪənˈtel, ˌkliː-/ formal the type of customers that a particular shop, restaurant etc gets: The hotel has a very upmarket clientele. | They have a wealthy international clientele.