Have you ever been asked シールでよろしいでしょうか? at a checkout of a shop?
Do you know what that means?
If you are one of those environmental people who are against single-use plastic bags, you should say はい. Why?
シール is from the English word “seal” but シール in Katakana refers to a sticker – an adhesive label. So シールでよろしいでしょうか? means: “Is it OK with a sticker (only)?” i.e. “Is it OK if I don’t give you a plastic bag?”
In Japan, even a smallest supermarket/convenience store has baskets for customers to carry unpaid items inside the shop. Going to the checkout with the basket and having the items transferred into a plastic bag from the shop serves as a proof that you have paid for them, but if you are buying only a small item, it’s silly to use a big bag for that and especially nowadays more and more people are concerned about environment, so in that case, the shop assistant will put a sticker of the shop directly on the item as a proof of purchase (they will also give you a receipt) instead of giving you a bag. Usually these stickers carry the name of the shop.
These days, more shops use a piece of sticky tape with something written instead of a sticker, so in that case, you may be asked テープでよろしいでしょうか? instead.
Even in Japan, more and more people are using their own shopping bag(s) and some shops have stopped giving free plastic bags away but I think it’s better not to use your own bag until you have paid for items. Once my husband did that and everybody was looking at him as though he was trying to shoplift! I suggest you use a basket inside the shop instead!
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Very helpful! ☺️