brick-and-mortar

American

[brik-uhn-mawr-ter] / ˈbrɪk ənˈmɔr tər /

Also bricks-and-mortar

adjective

pertaining to conventional stores, businesses, etc., having physical buildings and facilities, as opposed to internet or remote services.
made of bricks and mortar.

Etymology

Origin of brick-and-mortar

First recorded in 1860–65 brick-and-mortar for def. 2; brick-and-mortar def. 1 in 1985–90

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

With the world closed down, the couple took a leap, pouring all the money they got in stimulus checks into starting a brick-and-mortar business in the city of San Fernando.

From Los Angeles Times

However, CEO Tom Reeg indicated that the brick-and-mortar operating environment appeared stable.

From Barron's

In 2024, the owners of vintage clothing store the Bearded Beagle invited him to take over the parking lot space behind their new location on Figueroa St. Opening a brick-and-mortar store hadn’t been his ambition but Richardson accepted the opportunity: “I never envisioned opening my own physical store. It’s hard enough to have a retail space in Los Angeles to sell something that’s very niche.”

From Los Angeles Times

Nagi explains that not all of the centres are brick-and-mortar classrooms.

From BBC

Walmart on February 3 overtook the $1 trillion valuation marker, a rare occurrence for a brick-and-mortar legacy company that began as a family store in Arkansas in 1962.

From Barron's

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023