Look at these examples:

Ma mère a fait les courses samedi matin.
My mum went food shopping on Saturday morning

Elodie a fait du shopping avec sa mère. / Elodie a fait les magasins avec sa mère.
Elodie went shopping with her mum.

In French, you have more than one way to say "to go shopping", depending on the context:

"Faire les courses"

This expression refers exclusively to food and utilities shopping, like going to the supermarket.
Basically, any "not leisure" shopping!

"Faire les magasins/Faire du shopping"

These expressions both refer to the pleasure side of shopping, such as clothes, entertainment shopping. "Faire du shopping" is more commonly used in speech.

Learn more about these related French grammar topics

Idiotismes avec faire

Examples and resources

faire les courses

Je ne fais jamais les courses
I never go food shopping

Ma mère a fait les courses samedi matin.
My mum went food shopping on Saturday morning

faire les magasins / faire du shopping

Avec mes copines, on va faire du shopping ce weekend.
With my girlfriends, we're going shopping this weekend.

Elodie a fait du shopping avec sa mère. / Elodie a fait les magasins avec sa mère.
Elodie went shopping with her mum.

J'adore faire les magasins! / J'adore faire du shopping!
I love to go shopping!

Q&A Forum 8 questions, 10 answers

GraceA2Kwiziq community member

Quiz: faire les magasins vs faire du shopping

The sales are on, I'm going shopping ! : C'est les soldes, je vais ___ !

J'ai répondu avec "du shopping," mais la réponse était "les magasins." Mais dans la leçon, les deux semblent plutôt égales.

Dans ce contexte, ça doit être "les magasins" ? :)

Asked 4 months ago

Like0Answer0

Grace asked:View original

Quiz: faire les magasins vs faire du shopping

The sales are on, I'm going shopping ! : C'est les soldes, je vais ___ !

J'ai répondu avec "du shopping," mais la réponse était "les magasins." Mais dans la leçon, les deux semblent plutôt égales.

Dans ce contexte, ça doit être "les magasins" ? :)

Don't have an account yet? Join today

EmilyKwiziq community member

Faire des achats

How about the expression, "faire des achats"?

Asked 4 months ago

Like0Answer2

CécileKwiziq team memberCorrect answer

Hi Emily,

I would use -

Faire des achats, if I had a few specific things to buy...

Hope this helps!

Like04 months ago

TomC1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

Hi Emily,

I agree "faire des achats" could be used as well as "faire son marché"

Tom

Like04 months ago

Emily asked:View original

Faire des achats

How about the expression, "faire des achats"?

Don't have an account yet? Join today

PattiA2Kwiziq community member

Faire les courses

I don't know if this is important, but in English (at least, American) we don't usually say "food shopping" but "grocery shopping". =)

Asked 9 months ago

Like1Answer1

ChrisC1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

I guess this is just used as a simple way to illustrate the meaning of the two french terms "faire les courses" and "faire les magasins".

Like09 months ago

Patti asked:View original

Faire les courses

I don't know if this is important, but in English (at least, American) we don't usually say "food shopping" but "grocery shopping". =)

Don't have an account yet? Join today

MelisaA2Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Why faire and not fais?

From the quiz - C'est les soldes, je vais faire les magasins.

Why is faire used here instead of fais?

Asked 10 months ago

Like0Answer2

ChrisC1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor Correct answer

Because le future proche (the near future tense) is formed by aller + infinitive.

Je vais faire le ménage.
Tu vas faire le ménage.
Il va faire le ménage.... and so on.

Like010 months ago

MelisaA2Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Thank you, Chris. If I've had le future proche lessons before, I've forgotten them, so I'm off to brush up!

Like010 months ago

Melisa asked:View original

Why faire and not fais?

From the quiz - C'est les soldes, je vais faire les magasins.

Why is faire used here instead of fais?

Don't have an account yet? Join today

StevenB1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Faire les magasins

Can someone explain why it's faire DU shopping and faires LES magasins? Why is it not consistent and faire des magasins?

Asked 1 year ago

Like0Answer1

CécileKwiziq team memberCorrect answer

Hi Steven,

Strictly speaking 'faire les courses' and 'faire les magasins' is to go shopping, the first one normally relating to food and essentials and the second one more for department stores and boutiques.

'Faire du shopping' is an addition to our vocabulary and to me means to go to the shops, not necessarily with the intention of buying. There is another expression meaning the same thing 'faire du lèche-vitrine' (to go window-shopping) which uses 'du' too. Maybe that's the reason?

Hope this helps!

Like01 year ago

Steven asked:View original

Faire les magasins

Can someone explain why it's faire DU shopping and faires LES magasins? Why is it not consistent and faire des magasins?

Don't have an account yet? Join today

DeAnnaC1Kwiziq community member

Faire les course v. Faire des courses

I learned that the difference here is:

faire les courses = grocery shopping

faire des courses = running errands (still not leisure shopping but includes things like pharmacy, dry cleaning, dog to groomer etc.j

Is this correct?

Asked 1 year ago

Like0Answer1

CécileKwiziq team memberCorrect answer

Hi D,

'Faire les courses' is to go shopping, usually for grocery but not exclusively it will be in the shops you find on the high street. You would use 'faire des courses' if you had some shopping to do.

e.g. "Demain, je fais les courses et on part en weekend ..."

"J'ai des (quelques) courses à faire ce matin. Je dois passer au supermarché et à la pharmacie...."

Hope this helps!

Like01 year ago

DeAnna asked:View original