bodega
A small corner store, especially in NYC and other Northeast cities, typically run by Latino or Yemeni immigrants.
Etymology timeline
Born ~1840 · 1 year of recorded useSeen in the wild
There’s an actual bodega in metro Detroit. Here's what it's like.
Celebra tus eventos en un entorno único en Valdepeñas, 🍽🍷🍺 La Antigua Bodega de Los Llanos 📞 Reservas en el 926312000 @antiguabodegalosllanos
got enough baked goods, books, and junk food at the bodega to survive the day
my eye still twiching a lil from yesterday's big spasm and/or release abs on the right side feeling it hip flexors fine, not sore on my gay lil bodega walk right arm / shoulder still tense, jaw tightness, ear weird…
Very good I support #bodega #libraries in the #Bronx lithub.com/books-x-bode... No more #cognitive offloading my take here nkozphoto.com/index.php/20... #literacy #schools #education #reading #writing #literature #non…
Definitions
A small corner store, especially in NYC and other Northeast cities, typically run by Latino or Yemeni immigrants. Sells everything: groceries, beer, lottery tickets, deli sandwiches, often with a resident bodega cat. The bodega is foundational to NYC neighborhood culture.
"Grabbed a bacon-egg-and-cheese from the bodega."
“There’s an actual bodega in metro Detroit. Here's what it's like.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Celebra tus eventos en un entorno único en Valdepeñas, 🍽🍷🍺 La Antigua Bodega de Los Llanos 📞 Reservas en el 926312000 @antiguabodegalosllanos”
— Bluesky· May 2026“got enough baked goods, books, and junk food at the bodega to survive the day”
— Bluesky· May 2026“my eye still twiching a lil from yesterday's big spasm and/or release abs on the right side feeling it hip flexors fine, not sore on my gay lil bodega walk right arm / shoulder still tense, jaw tightness, ear weirdness blehhh”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Very good I support #bodega #libraries in the #Bronx lithub.com/books-x-bode... No more #cognitive offloading my take here nkozphoto.com/index.php/20... #literacy #schools #education #reading #writing #literature #nonfiction #fiction”
— Bluesky· May 2026
Comments
Any small or medium-sized shop with a unique facade in a shopping center plaza, usually located in the center or the sides of the plaza. (Does not include the of the shopping center, as they are usually referred to as the anchor.)
“Archived from [the original](https://gothamist.com/food/ask-a-native-new-yorker-whats-the-difference-between-a-bodega-a-deli-corner-grocer) on November 1, 2020.”
“# Bodega, California Bodega, California Unincorporated community in California, United States Not to be confused with [Bodega Bay, CA](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodega_Bay,_CA "Bodega Bay, CA"), a nearby settlement on the Pacific coast.”
“The harbor on the eastern side of [Bodega Head](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodega_Head "Bodega Head") and is protected from the main part of [Bodega Bay](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodega_Bay "Bodega Bay") to the south by a narrow sandy spit of land.”
Comments
Show 4 more dictionary-style senses (imported)
A store specializing in Hispanic groceries.
Comments
A warehouse; a storeroom.
Comments
A storehouse for maturing wine, a winery.
"bodega" means a storehouse for maturing wine, a winery. It is one of many casual words teens pick up from friends, social media, music or sport, and on its own it carries no particular warning. If you hear your teen use it, it is fair to ask what they mean by it in their friend group, since meanings drift quickly. Asking out of curiosity rather than alarm tends to keep the conversation open and useful.
"bodega" is informal English meaning a storehouse for maturing wine, a winery. It is used widely across English varieties. A more formal or neutral equivalent would be something like "a storehouse for maturing wine" expressed in standard vocabulary. A common mistake is to assume "bodega" can replace its standard equivalent in every register; keep it for spoken or casual situations and use the formal form in writing. If you are a B2 or C1 learner, it is useful to recognise this word when you hear or read it, but think carefully about whether the situation really calls for it before using it yourself.
Comments
Any convenience store.
Comments
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