car boot sale
/kɑː buːt seɪl/
CommonAn outdoor secondhand market where sellers sell items from the boots (trunks) of their cars.
Distinctly British. Culturally associated with Sunday mornings, rainy fields, and finding something weird or wonderful. Used nostalgically and also with genuine excitement by secondhand culture communities.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | car boot sale on sunday, who's coming | Inviting people to attend a car boot sale together. | x, 2024 |
| 02 | found a first edition at a car boot sale for 50p, my hands were shaking | An unexpectedly valuable item bought for almost nothing. | x, 2023 |
| 03 | did a car boot sale to clear out the spare room, made 60 quid and got rid of everything | Sold household items at a car boot sale as a declutter exercise. | reddit, 2023 |
| 04 | this whole outfit is car boot sale and charity shop, paid about 4 quid total | An outfit assembled entirely from budget secondhand sources. | tiktok, 2024 |
Use it when
- Referring to the British outdoor car-trunk secondhand market format.
- Sharing a haul or find from an actual car boot sale.
- Describing weekend plans or a cultural event in the UK.
Do not use it when
- You mean an indoor thrift store or charity shop.Use “charity shop” instead.
- You mean a large organized antique fair.Use “antique market” instead.
Variations and related forms
Car boot sale vs jumble sale
car boot sale
Car boot sale is an outdoor market where sellers come in their own cars. Anyone can set up a stall.
VS
jumble-sale
Jumble sale is typically organized indoors by a community group like a school or church, with donated items.
Origin and context
British English. The format dates to the 1970s in the UK, where sellers would open their car boots (trunks) to display goods. Now a widespread weekend institution.
- First seen
- 1970s
- Confidence
- high
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/car-boot-saleUpdated: 2026-08-28License: CC BY 4.0