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Comment by fukka42 | Hacker News Reader

Right, so they sell guns at a super market? Walmart is a super market and like you say, they sell guns.

How is this "not really"?

Walmart isn’t a supermarket, it’s a hypermarket, which isn’t really the same thing. This isn’t specifically a US distinction: it would also not be called a “supermarché” in France for example.

Most of them do have a (relatively small) grocery section, but are primarily dedicated to non-consumables like clothes, children’s toys, furniture, electronics, etc.

Whereas a typical supermarket (e.g. Safeway, Fry’s, Albertsons, Whole Foods etc.) might have a relatively small section of all of the above, but are primarily dedicated to food.

Exactly. His talking point seems to be, "In America you can go to a Tesco and buy a gun!" which is not remotely true. Replace with whatever stores you like in Europe (Carrefour, Aldi, whatever).

Never mentioned Tesco, never mentioned grocery stores. That's just you putting words in my mouth.

“Grocery store” and “supermarket” mean the same thing in most contexts in colloquial American English. What distinction are you drawing between them?

Calling Wal-Mart a supermarket is a giant stretch. As TFA says, some Wal-marts have groceries, and some have guns, and there is some small overlap between the two, but Wal-Mart is not what anyone would call a "Supermarket" - they are more an "Everything Store" where the "Everything" can vary by location which sometimes includes guns and groceries, but always includes TV's and frozen food and fishing supplies and clothing and shoes and candy and shampoo and razors and so on...

Most people are not buying groceries there, they go to actual supermarkets - near me Jewel-Osco, Mariano's, Aldi, Whole Foods, Kroger - none of which sell guns. Grocery stores do not sell guns by any common definition of the term "grocery store". You've got a corner case off of which your talking point is built. Corner cases do not make good foundations of arguments.

My advice: Come to the US and do some grocery shopping before making more such arguments.

I specifically said supermarkets, not grocery stores. I acknowledge they're not the same thing, but Walmart absolutely is a supermarket.

And I'll pass on visiting the US why y'all have armed police running around tackling people & disappearing them, and are demanding social media passwords only to refuse entry if you've been critical of Dear Leader. Sort your shit out, then maybe.

Supermarket and grocery store are basically synonyms in the US.

Walmart would be called a superstore or box store.

I agree with your first statement, but I'd point it the other way around. I often call big supermarkets grocery stores even when I shouldn't. And I never use "superstore" or "box store".

I'm fine calling walmart a supermarket.

Language is clearly missing something if we don’t have a different word for Walmart, Target, etc. versus Albertsons, Fry’s, etc. I think if the latter set are grocery stores, then the former are clearly something else.

> Walmart absolutely is a supermarket

As I said, even though I'm reluctantly willing to entertain this, it's an incredibly niche talking point. Except for this one corner case which is only kinda-sorta true, people cannot buy guns at grocery stores. That's nonsense, and your talking point is nonsense.

I never said grocery stores and you already agreed that what I did say is correct: You can buy guns at the supermarket in America.

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