customer
[noun]
Synonyms: client, buyer, consumer, patron, purchaser, regular (informal), shopper

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Related Words: buyer, consumer, purchaser, shopper

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English Thesaurus: customer, client, shopper, guest, patron, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

cus‧tom‧er S1 W1 /ˈkʌstəmə $ -ər/ noun [countable]
[Word Family: adjective: customary, custom, customizable, accustomed; noun: custom, customer, customs; verb: accustom, customize; adverb: customarily]
[Date: 1400-1500; Origin: custom; from the custom of doing business in a particular place]

1. someone who buys goods or services from a shop, company etc:
We aim to offer good value and service to all our customers.
We’ve had several letters from satisfied customers.
customer service/care
Many of the banks offer a poor level of customer service.
He’s one of our regular customers.
best/biggest/largest customer (=the person or company who uses a shop or company the most)

2. awkward/tricky/tough etc customer someone who is difficult to deal with because they behave in a deliberately unhelpful way ⇒ cool customer at cool¹(3)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

customer
noun
ADJ. big, favoured, good, important, key, large, major They are one of our biggest customers. They organized an evening's entertainment for favoured customers.
long-standing, long-time, loyal | regular | current, existing | potential, prospective, would-be There are a large number of potential customers for the new product.
dissatisfied, unhappy | satisfied We like to think that we have satisfied customers.
domestic | external, outside | international, overseas | personal, private | business, commercial, corporate, industrial
VERB + CUSTOMER have | deal with, serve | attract, entice, get It's a special offer to attract new customers.
lose We can't afford to lose any more customers.
CUSTOMER + NOUN care, relations, service, support If you have a complaint, contact the customer care unit. Part of good customer relations is knowing how to deal with complaints.
account, order | agreement The terms of the guarantee will be set out in the customer agreement.
demand/demands, needs, requirements, specifications This cheaper model was produced in response to customer demand.
reaction The questionnaire is to test customer reaction to the new store design.
dissatisfaction, satisfaction They carried out a customer satisfaction survey.
loyalty | complaints, enquiries | survey | profile, records | base They are hoping that TV advertising will increase their customer base.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

customer

a regular customer
My business quickly built up a base of regular customers.
a good customer (=who buys a lot from you, or uses your service a lot)
Good products attract good customers.
a major/big/large customer (=who is important and buys a lot)
America is a big customer for Japanese goods.
a loyal customer (=who has been a customer for a long time)
Some of our loyal customers have been coming here since the store opened.
a satisfied customer (=who is pleased with your goods or service)
Satisfied customers will retun again and again.
a potential/prospective customer (=who might become a customer in the future)
It’s very important to establish contact with potential customers.
a business customer (=customers that are businesses)
the bank’s major business customers
existing customers (=that you already have)
We want to improve our service for both new and existing customers.
deal with a customer (=do business with or talk to a customer)
He has a lot of experience in dealing with customers.
serve a customer
Every day the shop serves around 800 customers.
attract customers (=get more customers)
The Internet is a great way to attract new customers.
keep/retain customers
Keeping prices low helps to retain customers.
lose a customer
The company has lost some big customers in the last two years.
customer service/care (=serving and looking after customers)
Our aim is always to raise the level of customer service.
customer relations
Staff are given training in customer relations.
customer satisfaction (=how pleased customers are)
The firm carried out a survey of customer satisfaction.
customer demand (=the amount of something customers want to buy or use)
It’s important to respond quickly to changing customer demand.
customer complaints
My job is to handle customer complaints and enquiries.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

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.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲